CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian stocks ended on a muted note Tuesday as the Israel-Iran war continued to dominate risk markets.
A cautious undertone prevailed after U.S. President Donald Trump left the G7 summit in Canada a day early amid escalating war in the Middle East.
As Israel and Iran attacked each for a fifth straight day, Trump urged residents of Iran's capital, Tehran, to evacuate in a social media post, warning once again that Iran must not be allowed to develop nuclear weapons.
The Japanese yen recovered some ground after the Bank of Japan left interest rates unchanged and announced that it would decelerate the reduction of its government bond purchases beginning in April 2026.
Gold held steady while oil prices rose about 1 percent on fears that further escalation in Middle East tensions could trigger a broader regional conflict.
China's Shanghai Composite index fluctuated before finishing marginally lower at 3,387.40. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 0.34 percent to 23,980.30, dragged down by tech and EV stocks.
Japanese markets bucked the weak regional trend to hit a four-month high as BoJ Governor Kazuo Ueda warned against quick bond tapering.
The Nikkei average rose 0.59 percent to 38,536.74, led by banks and chip-related stocks. The broader Topix index settled 0.35 percent higher at 2,786.95. Disco Corp surged 6.3 percent, Tokyo Electron climbed 2.9 percent and Advantest added 2.4 percent.
Seoul stocks ended on a flat note, with the Kospi average closing up 0.12 percent at 2,950.30, thanks to gains in tech, auto and shipbuilding stocks. Samsung Electronics rose 1.6 percent, Hyundai Motor gained 1.7 percent and Hanwha Ocean soared 7.9 percent.
Australian markets ended marginally lower, giving up early gains.
St Barbara shares plunged 14.5 percent after the gold miner with operations in Canada and Papua New Guinea downgraded its full year gold production guidance and projected higher all-in sustaining cost for the year.
Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index dropped 0.40 percent to 12,639.35.
U.S. stocks rose sharply overnight amid hopes that the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran would remain contained.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite surged 1.5 percent, the S&P 500 climbed 0.9 percent and the Dow rose 0.8 percent after Iran reportedly called on U.S. President Trump to force a ceasefire in the four-day-old aerial war and the Israeli military claimed its campaign has eliminated high-value targets.
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