By Kimberley Kao
Asian equities were broadly higher as investors remained hopeful that the U.S. and Iran will reach a peace deal soon, allowing the vital Strait of Hormuz oil-shipping lane to reopen.
Regional mediators are pushing to extend the U.S.-Iran cease-fire, which ends next week, and to arrange a second round of talks, but progress has been slow, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing officials familiar with the matter. The U.S. and Iran have agreed in principle to meet but haven't decided on a date and venue, after marathon peace talks in Islamabad last weekend ended without a deal, according to the Journal.
On Thursday, Japan's Nikkei Stock Average climbed 2.4% and South Korea's Kospi rose 2.0%, while Taiwan's Taiex added 0.9%, tracking a surge in U.S. tech stocks overnight that sent the S&P 500 and Nasdaq composite to records.
"Financial markets and risk assets remained buoyant, as markets continued to price in and expect the cease-fire to hold and talks between the U.S. and Iran to resume," said Michael Wan, senior currency analyst at MUFG.
There is positive momentum to move toward a peaceful resolution, even though uncertainties remain about how Israel might respond, and how Iran's overall political decision-making internally will affect the negotiations, Wan said.
"The Middle East conflict is no longer treated as a stress point by market participants, and we wonder if a U.S.-Iran deal [or] cease-fire extension is already in the price," said Eugene Leow, senior rates strategist at DBS Group Research.
"Even as news flow has been erratic, investors are gravitating toward the view that the worst may be over," Leow said.
Easing concerns about crude supply disruptions in the Persian Gulf are capping oil prices. Front-month Brent crude futures were recently 0.1% lower at $94.83 a barrel, while front-month West Texas Intermediate crude futures were flat at $91.33 a barrel.
Spot gold was 0.7% higher at $4,824.21 a troy ounce.
"If tensions ease and oil prices fall, that could reduce short-term inflation pressure and ease some of the upward pressure on yields, which may support gold," Zaheer Anwari, chief executive of the Revacy Fund, said in an email.
Write to Kimberley Kao at kimberley.kao@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
04-15-26 2340ET
