HONG KONG – In a positive turn of events, Asian stock markets rallied on Friday, following a slight uptick in Wall Street’s performance. Meanwhile, oil prices experienced an increase as diplomatic efforts to resolve the ongoing conflict in Iran showed limited progress.
During U.S. trading on Thursday, oil prices saw a decline, which helped reduce some of the strain on the bond market as yields decreased. Earlier this week, soaring yields had posed a risk to global economic stability, threatening to dampen the value of stocks, bitcoin, and a variety of other investments.
U.S. futures showed a slight rise, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 surged by 2.7%, reaching 63,352.44. This came alongside a report revealing that inflation in April had dropped to a four-year low of 1.4%, despite rising oil and gas prices due to the ongoing war.
Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea’s Kospi index saw a gain of 0.6%, closing at 7,860.59. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index also appreciated, climbing by 1.2% to settle at 25,685.65. Additionally, China’s Shanghai Composite index edged up by 0.5%, reaching 4,096.24.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 index increased by 0.5%, ending the day at 8,664.00.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.5% at 8,664.00.
Taiwan’s Taiex was trading 1.5% higher, while India’s Sensex edged up 0.2%.
Oil prices remained elevated over disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for oil and gas transit, with shipping activities still well below before the Iran war began in late February. Talks between the U.S. and Iran have dragged on, adding to uncertainty.
Republicans in Congress struggled Thursday to find the votes to dismiss legislation that would compel President Donald Trump to withdraw from the war, delaying planned votes on the matter into June.
Brent crude, the international standard, gained 1.5% to $104.08 a barrel. It was around $70 per barrel in February before the war’s start. Benchmark U.S. crude traded 0.9% higher at $97.25 a barrel.
“Markets are still searching for signs of progress in a potential deal between the US and Iran,” ING commodities strategists Warren Patterson and Ewa Manthey wrote in a note on Friday. “While there are signs of optimism, uncertainty reigns.”
Wall Street gained on Thursday, with the benchmark S&P 500 adding 0.2% to 7,445.72. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.6% to 50,285.66, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq composite edged up 0.1% to 26,293.10.
Shares of Nvidia fell 1.8% despite better-than-expected quarterly results on the artificial intelligence frenzy, with some analysts believing its share price still as undervalued.
Southwest Airlines gained 2.7% and American Airlines climbed 4.9% as oil prices eased before bouncing back. Ralph Lauren surged 13.9% following stronger-than-expected quarterly results.
In other dealings early Friday, the yield on the U.S. 10-year Treasury was at 4.56%, down from more than 4.67% earlier in the week, when higher global inflationary pressures stemming from the war fueled a surge in bond yields.
The U.S. dollar rose to 159.02 Japanese yen from 158.98 yen. The euro was trading at $1.1613, down from $1.1619.
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AP Business Writers Matt Ott and Stan Choe contributed.
