CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian markets are trading mostly lower on Thursday, following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight, on renewed conflicts in the Middle East after Iran launched surprise attacks on U.S. bases in Jordan, surging crude oil prices and concerns over the outlook for interest rates, which the US Fed left rates unchanged, although three members voted to increase rates. Asian markets closed mixed on Wednesday.
The US Fed kept interest rates on hold, despite rising inflationary risks stemming from the war in the Middle East. Another re-escalation of the conflict between the U.S. and Iran was seen after four consecutive attack-free nights.
The Australian market is trading notably lower on Thursday, snapping a three session winning streak, following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is falling well below the 9,000 mark, with weakness in gold miners partially offset by gains in financial stocks and a mixed performance across most other sectors.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 40.00 points or 0.44 percent to 8,998.60, after hitting a low of 8,972.30 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 41.40 points or 0.45 percent to 9,158.30. Australian stocks ended significantly higher on Wednesday.
Among major miners, BHP Group is losing almost 1 percent and Fortescue is edging down 0.4 percent, while Mineral Resources is advancing more than 2 percent and Rio Tinto is gaining almost 1 percent.
Oil stocks are mostly higher. Woodside Energy is gaining almost 1 percent, while Beach energy and Santos are edging up 0.2 to 0.4 percent each. Origin Energy is edging down 0.4 percent.
In the tech space, Afterpay owner Block is edging down 0.2 percent and Zip is slipping more than 4 percent, while WiseTech Global is surging almost 5 percent, Xero is edging up 0.2 percent and Appen is soaring more than 11 percent.
Among the big four banks, ANZ Banking and Commonwealth Bank are edging up 0.3 percent each, while Westpac is gaining more than 1 percent and National Australia Bank is adding almost 1 percent.
Among gold miners, Newmont, Genesis Minerals and Evolution Mining are down almost 1 percent each, while Northern Star Resources is losing more than 1 percent and Resolute Mining is declining more than 2 percent.
In other news, shares in Domino's Pizza are surging almost 9 percent after the fast food company's profit came in higher than expected, and reiterating that its underlying net profit is expected to come in as forecast.
Shares in IperionX are sliding almost 8 percent despite growing titanium production capacity and advancing its Titan-Atlas resources in the June quarter, bolstered by strong government and customer support.
In economic news, Australia's seasonally adjusted dwelling approvals rose 7.2 percent on month to a four-month high of 18,328 units in June 2026, defying market expectations of a 1 percent decline after a revised 1.6 percent fall in May, according to preliminary estimates.
Private house approvals in Australia rose 0.4 percent on month to 10,631 units in June 2026, according to preliminary estimates, easing from a downwardly revised 2.4 percent increase in the previous month. This marked the second consecutive monthly gain. On an annual basis, private house approvals climbed 15.8 percent, accelerating from a 13.3 percent increase in the previous month and marking the strongest annual growth since September 2024.
Meanwhile, Australia's export prices climbed 1.1 percent on quarter in the second quarter of 2026, after a 0.5 percent rise in the previous quarter. It was the third consecutive quarterly increase. Through the year to the second quarter, export prices rose 3.9 percent.
In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.696 on Thursday.
The Japanese market is trading sharply higher on Thursday after opening in the red, reversing some of the sharp losses in the previous two sessions, despite the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight. The Nikkei 225 is moving above the 62,200 level, with strong gains in technology stocks partially offset by weakness in index heavyweights, automakers and financial stocks.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 62,218.41, up 784.22 points or 1.28 percent, after hitting a low of 61,049.70 earlier. Japanese stocks ended sharply lower on Wednesday.
Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is losing more than 1 percent and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is down almost 1 percent. Among automakers, Toyota is losing more than 2 percent and Honda is down almost 2 percent.
In the tech space, Advantest is soaring almost 13 percent, Screen Holdings is advancing almost 3 percent and Tokyo Electron is surging almost 5 percent.
In the banking sector, Mizuho Financial and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial are losing almost 3 percent each, while Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is declining almost 2 percent.
Among the major exporters, Mitsubishi Electric is gaining more than 2 percent and Panasonic is adding almost 2 percent, while Sony is edging down 0.4 percent and Canon is losing almost 2 percent.
Among other major gainers, Kioxia Holdings is soaring almost 11 percent, Ibiden is jumping more than 8 percent, while Mitsui Kinzoku, Murata Manufacturing and NEC are surging more than 7 percent each. TDK is advancing almost 6 percent and Furukawa Electric is gaining almost 5 percent, while Sumitomo Electric Industries and Renesas Electronics are adding more than 4 percent each, while Fuji Electric, Fujikura and NGK are up almost 4 percent each.
Conversely, Nomura Holdings is tumbling almost 6 percent and Tokyo Electric Power is sliding more than 5 percent, while Konami Group and Ryohin Keikaku are slipping more than 4 percent each. Eisai and Kyowa Kirin are declining almost 4 percent each. J. Front Retailing, Shiseido, Sapporo Holdings, Japan Exchange, Chubu Electric Power, Nissui, East Japan Railway, SHIFT and Nitori Holdings are all losing more than 3 percent each.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the lower 163 yen-range on Thursday.
Elsewhere in Asia, New Zealand is down 1.5 percent, while China, Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia are lower by between 0.2 and 0.6 percent each. South Korea and Taiwan are surging 4.3 and 1.9 percent, respectively. Indonesia is up 0.4 percent.
On Wall Street, stocks showed a significant recovery over the course of the afternoon before seeing substantial volatility late in the day after tumbling early in the session on Wednesday. The Nasdaq and S&P 500 reached positive territory going into the final hour of trading only to nosedive going into the end of the session.
The major averages all finished the day sharply lower, just off their worst levels. The Dow plunged 1,153.18 points or 2.2 percent to 51,594.14, the Nasdaq tumbled 433.97 points or 1.7 percent to 24,442.94 and the S&P 500 slumped 112.63 points or 1.5 percent to 7,316.15.
Meanwhile, the major European markets ended the day mixed. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index rose 0.3 percent, the German DAX Index closed just below the unchanged line and the French CAC 40 Index slid by 0.6 percent.
Crude oil prices skyrocketed on Wednesday after Iran launched surprise attacks on U.S. bases in Jordan. West Texas Intermediate crude for September delivery was up $5.55 or 7.00 percent at $84.81 per barrel.
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