South Korea stocks lead gains in Asia as oil prices plunge after U.S.-Iran ceasefire deal – CNBC
Asia-Pacific markets rallied on Wednesday after U.S. President Donald Trump said he had agreed to suspend planned attacks on Iranian infrastructure for two weeks.
The move was “subject to the Islamic Republic of Iran agreeing to the COMPLETE, IMMEDIATE, and SAFE OPENING of the Strait of Hormuz,” he wrote on Truth Social.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, in a post on X on behalf of the country’s Supreme National Security Council, said Tehran’s armed forces will “cease their defensive operations.“
Trump noted the 2-week ceasefire was subject to Iran agreeing to a complete, immediate and safe opening of the Strait of Hormuz. Araghchi said that safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz will be possible for the next two weeks in coordination with Iran’s armed forces.
U.S. crude oil prices plunged on the news. The West Texas Intermediate fell more than 16% to $94.71 per barrel by 2.40 a.m. ET. International benchmark Brent lost more than 14.9% to $93 per barrel.
South Korea’s Kospi surged almost 7% to close at 5,872.34 while the small-cap Kosdaq was up 5.12%, ending the trading day at 1,089.85.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 widened gains to 5.39%, closing at 56,308.42, while the Topix rose 3.32% to 3,775.3.
China’s CSI 300 ended the Wednesday session 3.49% higher. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index last traded up 2.95% at 3:05 a.m. ET, after resuming trading following a holiday. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 2.55% to 8,951.8.
India’s Nifty 50 was up 3.65%.
“For longer, energy prices were destined to be fairly inflationary around the world. And if there’s now a bit of a belief or some visibility that energy prices can come back down, that’s better for inflation, better for the outlook of central bank cuts and so on,” said Josh Rubin, portfolio manager at Thornburg Investments.
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 718 points, or 1.5%. S&P 500 futures added 1.6%, and Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 1.7%.
Overnight in the U.S., the S&P 500 inched up 0.08% and closed at 6,616.85, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.10% to settle at 22,017.85. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 85.42 points, or 0.18%, closing at 46,584.46.
—CNBC’s Sean Conlon and Lisa Kailai Han contributed to this report.
