By Kimberley Kao
Asian equities broadly rose as investors remained hopeful that the U.S. and Iran will reach a peace deal soon, allowing the Strait of Hormuz to reopen its oil-shipping lane.
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, the Journal reported.
On Thursday, Japan's Nikkei Stock Average closed 2.4% higher at a record 59518.34, recouping losses from the Iran war and fears of an energy shortage.
South Korea's Kospi rose 2.2% to 6226.05, also nearing pre-conflict levels, while Taiwan's Taiex ended at a record high, led by TSMC ahead of earnings. Markets tracked a surge in U.S. tech stocks overnight that sent the S&P 500 and Nasdaq composite to records.
Risk assets remained buoyant, said Michael Wan, senior currency analyst at MUFG, adding that "markets continued to price in and expect the cease-fire to hold and talks between the U.S. and Iran to resume."
There is positive momentum for a peaceful resolution, though uncertainties remain about how Israel might respond and how Iran's overall political decision-making will affect the negotiations, Wan said.
"The Middle East conflict is no longer treated as a stress point by market participants," 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.
China's Shanghai Composite Index closed 0.7% higher after Beijing reported 5% GDP growth for the first quarter, up from 4.5% growth in the fourth-quarter. Nasdaq-like ChiNext Price Index rose 3.2% to the highest level in almost 11 years.
Oil futures were choppy, but the potential easing of crude supply disruptions in the Persian Gulf is capping oil price gains.
Front-month Brent crude futures were up 0.7% at $95.56, while front-month West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 0.7% to $91.91 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," said Zaheer Anwari, chief executive of the Revacy Fund.
Write to Kimberley Kao at kimberley.kao@wsj.com
Corrections & Amplifications
This article was corrected at 05:44 a.m. ET to clarify front-month Brent crude futures were up 0.7% at $95.56, while front-month West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 0.7% to $91.91 a barrel. An earlier article incorrectly swapped the oil contracts' prices.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
04-16-26 0355ET
