CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian stock markets are trading mostly higher on Monday, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street on Friday, as traders remain cautious amid the uncertainty prevailing around the peace talks between the U.S. and Iran. Tensions in the Middle-East escalated over the weekend with Iran reportedly not ready for new face-to-face talks with the U.S., citing maximalist demands. Asian markets closed mostly lower on Friday.
Tehran also again closed the Strait of Hormuz because of the U.S.'s ongoing blockade of its ports. It had declared the Strait of Hormuz completely open to commercial traffic on the heels of the 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the Strait of Hormuz is 'completely open and ready for business' but said the U.S. will continue its blockade of Iranian ports until a final peace agreement is reached.
Meanwhile, Axios reported that the U.S. and Iran are preparing a three-page peace plan. Under the proposed plan, the U.S. may release up to $20 billion in frozen Iranian funds in exchange for Iran relinquishing its enriched uranium stockpile.
The Australian stock market is slightly lower on Monday, extending the losses in the previous two sessions, despite the broadly positive cues from Wall Street on Friday. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index is falling to near the 8,900.00 level, with weakness in mining, energy and financial stocks.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 5.30 points or 0.06 percent to 8,941.60, after hitting a low of 8,898.40 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 3.10 points or 0.03 percent to 9,165.60. Australian stocks closed slightly lower on Friday.
Among the major miners, Rio Tinto and BHP Group are losing almost 1 percent each, while Fortescue and Mineral Resources are declining more than 1 percent each.
Oil stocks are mostly lower. Beach energy, Santos and Origin Energy are losing almost 2 percent each, while Woodside Energy is declining almost 3 percent.
Among tech stocks, Afterpay owner Block is gaining more than 2 percent, Zip is jumping more than 10 percent and Xero is edging up 0.3 percent, while WiseTech Global is edging down 0.2 percent and Appen is losing almost 1 percent.
Gold miners are mostly lower. Northern Star Resources is gaining almost 1 percent, Resolute Mining is up more than 1 percent and Evolution Mining is advancing almost 2 percent, while Genesis Minerals and Newmont are adding more than 2 percent each.
Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank is gaining almost 1 percent and Westpac is edging up 0.2 percent, while National Australia Bank is declining more than 3 percent and ANZ Banking is losing almost 1 percent.
In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.715 on Monday.
The Japanese stock market is trading significantly higher on Monday, reversing some of the sharp losses in the previous session, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street on Friday, with the Nikkei 225 moving up to near the 59,050 level, with gains across most sectors led by index heavyweights, automakers and financial stocks.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 59,045.45, up 569.55 points or 0.97 percent, after touching a high of 59,113.29 earlier. Japanese shares ended sharply lower on Friday.
Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is gaining more than 3 percent and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is adding more than 1 percent. Among automakers, Honda is advancing more than 2 percent and Toyota is gaining almost 2 percent.
In the tech space, Advantest is losing almost 1 percent, while Screen Holdings is advancing almost 3 percent and Tokyo Electron is gaining more than 1 percent.
In the banking sector, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is edging up 0.5 percent, while Mitsubishi UFJ Financial and Mizuho Financial are gaining almost 1 percent each.
The major exporters are higher. Mitsubishi Electric is gaining more than 3 percent, while Sony and Canon are edging up 0.1 to 0.2 percent each. Panasonic is flat.
Among the other major gainers, Chugai Pharmaceutical is surging almost 6 percent, while Lasertec, Minebea Mitsumi, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Renesas Electronics are advancing almost 5 percent each. Yaskawa Electric is gaining more than 4 percent, while Ebara, BayCurrent and Tokio Marine are adding almost 4 percent each. Nissan Motor, NSK and Komatsu are rising more than 3 percent each, while Yokohama Rubber and Sumitomo Electric Industries are up almost 3 percent each.
Conversely, Sumitomo Pharma, JGC Holdings and Tokyo Gas are sliding almost 4 percent each, while TDK and Ryohin Keikaku are losing more than 3 percent each. Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, ENEOS Holdings and Trend Micro are declining almost 3 percent each.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the higher 158 yen-range on Monday.
Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong, South Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia and Taiwan are higher by between 0.3 and 1.3 percent each. New Zealand, China and Singapore are lower by between 0.1 and 0.2 percent each.
On Wall Street, stocks moved sharply higher during trading on Friday extending the strong upward move seen over the past several sessions. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 once again reached new record closing highs, while the Dow reached its best closing level in almost two months.
The major averages ended the day off their highs of the session but still posted strong gains. The Dow surged 868.71 points or 1.8 percent to 49,447.43, the Nasdaq shot up 365.78 points or 1.5 percent to 24,468.48 and the S&P 500 jumped 84.78 points or 1.2 percent to 7,126.06.
The major European markets also moved to the upside on the day. While the German DAX Index surged by 2.3 percent, the French CAC 40 Index jumped by 2 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index advanced by 0.7 percent.
Crude oil prices nosedived on Friday amid easing supply-related concerns on news of the temporary reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery was down $11.17 or 10.58 percent at $84.11 per barrel.
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