SINGAPORE: Oil prices jumped and stock futures fell on Monday (Apr 20) as rising tension in the Middle East kept shipping in and out of the Gulf to a minimum, though traders held out hope for a resolution and Asia’s stock markets breezed toward record highs.
Brent crude futures rose about 5 per cent to US$95.16 a barrel. S&P 500 futures fell around 0.6 per cent and European futures fell 1.1 per cent. But equity benchmarks in Seoul, Taipei and Tokyo shrugged off risks to advance, with Taiwan’s shares touching a record high and the other two not far behind.
Iran has re-imposed its de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz, though Kpler data showed that more than 20 vessels carrying oil products, metals, gas and fertiliser passed through it on Saturday, the busiest day for the chokepoint since Mar 1.
The ceasefire in the Iran war, due to run until Tuesday, was in doubt after the US seized an Iranian cargo ship and Tehran’s top military command vowed to retaliate.
“The headlines look bad; it looks like there’s disagreement … which has led to a little bit of re-escalation,” said Damien Boey, portfolio strategist at Wilson Asset Management in Sydney.
“But I think, ultimately, both sides want to be able to do a deal – that’s part of the reason why the market’s optimistic and not selling off too much.”
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.8 per cent, Japan’s Nikkei climbed 1 per cent and South Korea’s KOSPI rose 1.4 per cent.
One of the strongest notes of caution in markets on Monday came from Australia’s largest business lender, National Australia Bank, which flagged a US$500 million impairment charge as it expects the war to drive up bad debts.
