NEW YORK
\nAsian markets mostly rose on Wednesday, and oil prices dipped following another tech-led advance on Wall Street, as the United States hit Iranian missile sites near the key Strait of Hormuz and Tehran struck crude-producing Gulf neighbours.
\nWhile the war in the Middle East shows no sign of ending and oil has stuck around $100 a barrel \u2014 threatening to fuel a fresh inflation spike \u2014 equity traders have shifted back into the market after the steep losses suffered at the outset of the conflict. However, analysts warned the positive mood could fade if the crisis drags on and energy costs spiral with Hormuz \u2014 through which a fifth of global oil and gas flow \u2014 effectively closed by Iran.
\nThat comes with central banks increasingly in a bind as the need for lower interest rates to support the economy goes up against the prospect of rising prices, which would need higher borrowing costs. In a bid to ease traffic through the crucial Strait, US forces dropped several 5,000-pound (2,250 kg) bombs on \u201chardened Iranian missile sites\u201d near the coast, Central Command said.
\nIran has sought to extract a heavy toll on the global economy in retaliation for the US-Israeli attack, including by driving up the cost of oil. US President Donald Trump on Tuesday fumed that allies, which have largely distanced themselves from his war, were not lining up to help escort tankers through Hormuz.
\nThe attacks came as Israel announced it had killed security chief Ali Larijani, a key force leading Iran since the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in the first strikes of the war.
\nMeanwhile, Saudi Arabia intercepted six drones and Kuwait\u2019s air defences responded to a rocket and drone attack, authorities from both countries said Wednesday, while two people were killed by missiles near Tel Aviv.
\nIsrael also hit a central Beirut neighbourhood as it looks to take out the Hezbollah. Rystad Energy estimated just 12.5 million barrels per day of Middle Eastern oil remains online, down from the 21 million per day pre-war base. \u201cBut the 12.5 million bpd figure is not secure,\u201d Rystad said. \u201cIf the (Hormuz) situation persists, the drop in departures could start feeding through into additional export losses in the weeks ahead, as producers face growing difficulty moving crude out of the Gulf.\u201d
\nStill, oil prices fell, with West Texas Intermediate losing more than one percent to sit around $95, while Brent dipped 0.8%, though it was still holding above $102. And stocks continued to defy gravity following gains on Wall Street that were helped by tech giants including Apple and Amazon.
\nSeoul jumped more than three percent thanks to a surge in chip giants Samsung and SK hynix. The Kospi, however, is still well down from the record highs touched before the war broke out. Tokyo was up more than two percent, while Taipei, Sydney, Singapore and Wellington also rallied. Hong Kong and Shanghai dipped.
\n\u201cAsia is picking up the baton with a cautiously constructive tone… all of it leaning on the signal from Wall Street where the S&P and Nasdaq have now strung together a second day of gains, suggesting the market is actively choosing to look through the geopolitical noise rather than price it in the fore,\u201d wrote SPI Asset Management\u2019s Stephen Innes. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
NEW YORK Asian markets mostly rose on Wednesday, and oil prices dipped following another tech-led advance on Wall Street, as the United States hit Iranian missile sites near the key Strait of Hormuz and Tehran struck crude-producing Gulf neighbours. While the war in the Middle East shows no sign of ending and oil has stuck […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-537426","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-business"],"yoast_head":"\n