Asia-Pacific markets declined on Friday as Israel launched military strikes against Iran, intensifying geopolitical tensions and triggering a sharp rise in oil prices.
At 11:35 am AEST (1:35 am GMT), Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was down 0.4%, Japan’s Nikkei 225 lost 1.5%, and South Korea’s Kospi 200 slipped 1.1%.
Oil prices spiked on the news, with U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude surging 7.6% and Brent crude climbing 7.3%, as investors braced for potential supply disruptions in the region.
In Thursday’s U.S. trading session, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq Composite each rose 0.2%, while the S&P 500 added 0.4%, buoyed by cooler-than-expected inflation data.
Overnight, Brent crude had eased 0.6% to US$69.36 per barrel before the escalation, while spot gold rose 0.9% to US$3,386.58 per ounce as investors sought safety.
Chinese markets remained relatively stable, with the Shanghai Composite closing flat at 3,402.7 and the CSI 300 dipping 0.1% to 3,892.2.
In contrast, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 1.4% to 24,035.4, and India’s BSE Sensex shed 1% to 81,692.0.
European markets closed mixed ahead of the news, with the UK’s FTSE 100 up 0.2% to a record 8,884.9, while Germany’s DAX fell 0.7% to 23,771.5 and France’s CAC 40 dipped 0.1% to 7,765.1.
