Asia markets open mixed as U.S.-Iran tensions escalate after ship seizure

Currency dealers monitor exchange rates as an electronic screen (top) shows South Korea’s benchmark stock index (KOSPI) in a foreign exchange dealing room at the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul on March 13, 2026.

Jung Yeon-je | Afp | Getty Images

Asia-Pacific markets were mixed Monday, as investors continue to keep a cautious eye on developments in the Middle East amid renewed tensions between Iran and the U.S.

President Donald Trump said Sunday that a U.S Navy guided missile destroyer had fired on and disabled an Iranian-flagged cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman before Marines boarded and seized the vessel.

The seizure is an escalation of the blockade and comes after Iran fired upon commercial vessels attempting to transit the Strait of Hormuz earlier Sunday. The strait is between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.

Since last week, the U.S. has been operating a naval blockade of ships entering and exiting Iranian ports. Iran views the ongoing blockade as a breach of the ceasefire reached by the U.S. and Iran, and cites this as one of its reasons for calling off the expected negotiations on Monday in Islamabad.

Trump warned on Sunday he would “knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran” if Tehran did not agree to Washington’s terms to end the conflict.

West Texas Intermediate futures surged 8.11% to $90.65 per barrel as of 8:03 p.m. ET. Brent crude rose 7.21% higher to $96.90 per barrel.

South Korea’s Kospi was higher at 0.27% while the small-cap Kosdaq dropped 0.52%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.62%, while the Topix gained 0.68%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was 0.39% lower.

Hong Kong Hang Seng index futures were at 26,502, higher than the index’s last close of 26,160.33.

Stock Chart IconStock chart icon

Overnight on Wall Street, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures shed 425 points, or 0.9%. S&P 500 futures lost 0.8%, while Nasdaq-100 futures fell 0.65%.

During Friday’s regular session, the S&P 500 jumped 1.2% to close at 7,126.06, crossing the 7,100 threshold for the first time. The Nasdaq Composite gained 1.52% and settled at 24,468.48 for its 13th consecutive winning day and its longest positive streak since 1992. Both indexes posted fresh intraday and closing records. 

— CNBC’s Fred Imbert, Sean Conlon, Lisa Kailai Han and Garrett Downs contributed to this report.

Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.

Source link

Visited 1 times, 1 visit(s) today

Related Article

Broadcom Joins the $2 Trillion Club, and 4 of the 5 Vanguard ETFs That Just Underwent Stock Splits Hold It. Here’s an Even Better Low-Cost ETF for Long-Term Broadcom Investors.

Five low-cost exchange-traded funds (ETFs) operated by investment management firm Vanguard underwent stock splits on April 21. And Broadcom (AVGO +0.62%) is a top 10 holding in four of those five funds. The next day, on April 22, Broadcom hit an all-time high amid a broader stock market rally and Alphabet-related news. Broadcom is expanding

Graco (GGG) Valuation Check After Recent Share Price Moves

Find winning stocks in any market cycle. Join 7 million investors using Simply Wall St’s investing ideas for FREE. Graco (GGG) has been drawing attention after recent share price moves, with the stock closing at US$81.58 as investors weigh its performance in contractor, industrial, and expansion market segments. See our latest analysis for Graco. Recent

Earnings Calendar for the Week: A Star-Studded Lineup on the Markets

Welcome to the corporate earnings calendar for the week of April 27 to May 1, 2026. The highlights this week include results from Microsoft, Exxon Mobil, LVMH, Alphabet, TotalEnergies, Airbus, Meta Platforms, BNP Paribas, Novartis and Samsung Electronics. Monday, April 27, 2026 US & Canada Verizon Communications, Inc.: Earnings Public Storage: Earnings Nucor Corporation: Earnings

ASX Growth Leaders With High Insider Ownership April 2026

As the Australian share market shows resilience with a +0.4% advance amidst global uncertainties, particularly contrasting Wall Street’s downturn, investors are keenly observing how local factors such as potential interest rate changes influence trading sentiment. In this environment, companies with high insider ownership often attract attention for their perceived alignment of interests between management and

Low Volatility Meets High Dividend Yield

Bristol Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) has been on a decent run over the past year, with the stock price climbing more than 20%. That may be surprising to some, as the company expects lower sales in 2026 than in 2025. On the surface, that does sound like enough to keep some investors away. Will AI

“Sounds Interesting, But Not 100% Up Interesting, Sell Some”

POET Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:POET) was among Jim Cramer’s latest stock calls, as he suggested investors balance portfolios with hot and cold stocks. Noting the stock’s parabolic move, Cramer said: Then there’s POET, Navitas, and Credo. These are all semiconductor networking stocks that have gone parabolic, each up around 100% this month. We profiled POET earlier

Is Equinix, Inc. (EQIX) A Good Stock To Buy Now?

Is EQIX a good stock to buy? We came across a bullish thesis on Equinix, Inc. on r/AIPortfolios by manojs. In this article, we will summarize the bulls’ thesis on EQIX. Equinix, Inc.’s share was trading at $1,103.97 as of April 20th. EQIX’s trailing and forward P/E were 80.23 and 67.11 respectively according to Yahoo Finance. Is

Apple after Cook, Allbirds after shoes, and TKer Stock Market Truth No. 9 🍎🐦

Nothing lasts forever. This is especially true in the business world: Entrepreneurs and executives come and go, and industries and companies rise and fall. These dynamics are very much at the core of TKer Stock Market Truth No. 9: There’s a lot of turnover in the stock market. Specifically, this observation concerns how stocks are

Adecoagro Sets 2026 Dividend Plan As Cash Returns Face Key Tradeoffs

Get insights on thousands of stocks from the global community of over 7 million individual investors at Simply Wall St. Adecoagro (NYSE:AGRO) has approved a new cash dividend distribution to shareholders. The dividend will be paid in two installments scheduled for May and November 2026. The decision reflects a planned return of capital to investors

The Mistakes I Keep Seeing ETF Investors Make With “Set It and Forget It” Funds

For as much good as the ETF industry has done in offering hundreds of ultra-cheap investment products targeting almost every market, sector, and theme, they’re not perfect. We often hear the phrase “set it and forget it” when it comes to investing. I’ve used it several times myself. While that theory works at a high

Amkor (AMKR) Reports Earnings Tomorrow: What To Expect

Semiconductor packaging and testing company Amkor Technology (NASDAQ:AMKR) will be announcing earnings results this Monday after market hours. Here’s what to look for. Amkor beat analysts’ revenue expectations last quarter, reporting revenues of $1.89 billion, up 15.9% year on year. It was an exceptional quarter for the company, with a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates

Stock Market Outlook: 4 Signs AI Trade Could Soar 30% in Dot-Com-Style Rally

The stock market looks like it’s headed for a 1999 moment, BCA Research says. Loading audio narration… The investment research firm said it sees the potential for an AI-fueled “melt-up” in the stock market— a sharp rally in stocks that other forecasters have predicted could be followed by a brutal meltdown. BCA said that’s because

0
Would love your thoughts, please comment.x
()
x