By Jiahui Huang
Energy stocks in Asia soared despite a regional equity selloff amid the growing conflict across the Middle East, fueling concerns about a prolonged disruption to oil and gas supplies.
Oil futures vaulted past $100 a barrel for the first time in years, surging close to $120 on Monday. Front-month Brent crude was recently 25% higher at nearly $116 a barrel in midday trading, while WTI crude was up 27% around $115 a barrel.
Across Asia, major energy stocks jumped in unison, with China's big three oil companies up sharply in both mainland and Hong Kong markets. Cnooc rose 10% in Shanghai, hitting its daily limit, while PetroChina and Sinopec gained 7.6% and 3.6%, respectively. In Hong Kong, Cnooc led gains on the benchmark Hang Seng Index and was last 7.0% higher. PetroChina rose 3.6%.
Among other energy stocks, China Shenhua Energy gained 4.5% in Hong Kong, while Yankuang Energy Group and Ningxia Baofeng Energy Group advanced 7.7% and 10%, respectively, in Shanghai. China Coal Energy's A shares climbed 7.2%.
In Malaysia, Hibiscus Petroleum's shares rose 18.5% and Petronas Chemicals advanced 7.0%. Lotte Chemical Titan increased 14% and Dialog Group gained 10%.
Singapore-based Rex International, an oil exploration and production company, rose 10.5%. South Korea's S-Oil added 0.9% and Japan's Inpex rose 2.8%.
The gains come as investors priced in the risk of lasting damage to energy infrastructure in the Middle East and a prolonged supply disruption.
"As energy stocks typically benefit from rising oil prices, it is no surprise to see broad gains across Asia's energy sector following the recent surge in crude," said Chokwai Lee, equity research director at Morningstar.
Asian countries, which are mostly net oil importers, also stand to be the worst hit as the conflict in Iran chokes off traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. The critical waterway carries about one-fifth of the world's oil and gas supplies.
"The recent precise attack on Iran's oil infrastructure, an attempt to cripple Tehran's retaliation, has threatened the flow of fuel across the globe, which is alarming, especially for Asian economies," said Priyanka Sachdeva, senior market analyst at Phillip Nova.
The conflict between the U.S.-Israel alliance and Iran may drag on for longer than investors initially expected, given that Iran has selected a new supreme leader, and both sides appear unwilling to move toward peace talks, according to Sachdeva.
"If production facilities, pipelines, or export terminals suffer permanent damage, the impact on global supply could extend well beyond the duration of the conflict," she said.
Write to Jiahui Huang at jiahui.huang@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
03-09-26 0052ET
