Firefighters inspect destruction at a site of an Israeli airstrike in the southern suburbs of Beirut on March 3, 2026. The war launched by the U.S. and Israel against Iran has spread across the Middle East, threatening to plunge the global economy into chaos, with Lebanon and Gulf energy exporters dragged into the conflict.
– | Afp | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets opened mostly higher Friday, as a fragile two-week ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran keeps investors on tenterhooks.
The Mideast conflict, which has been going on for more than a month, led to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, and traffic continues to largely be restricted via the crucial energy waterway despite the ceasefire.
Tehran had said it would reopen the strait as long as all attacks on the country were halted, according to a statement from its foreign minister. Media reports said that Israel had also agreed to the ceasefire. That followed U.S. President Donald Trump pausing attacks on Iran on Tuesday.
Trump said Thursday that Iran “better stop now” if it was charging fees to oil tankers for allowing them passage through the strait, while Iran’s parliamentary speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, charged the U.S. on Wednesday of violating the ceasefire agreement.
The West Texas Intermediate was up 0.64% at $98.50 per barrel as of 8:04 p.m. ET. Brent crude rose by 0.90% to $96.83 per barrel. WTI had crossed $100 per barrel earlier in the session, as traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remained minimal despite the ceasefire agreement with U.S.
South Korea’s Kospi advanced at 1.88% higher, while the small-cap Kosdaq was 1.04% higher. Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 1%, while the Topix rose 0.34%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was 0.68% lower.
Hong Kong Hang Seng index futures were last at 25,900, compared with the index’s Thursday close of 25,752.40.
In Australia, futures for the benchmark index last traded at 8,995, while the S&P/ASX 200‘s closed at 8,973.20.
Overnight on Wall Street,  oil prices came off their highs of the day while the S&P 500 traded into the green.
The S&P 500 ended the session at 6,824.66, adding 0.62%, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.83% to 22,822.42. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 275.88 points, or 0.58%, and settled at 48,185.80. The 30-stock index turned positive for the year, up 0.25%.
— Sean Conlon and Lisa Kailai Han contributed to the report
