Major Asian markets were mostly in positive territory on Friday afternoon following the easing of U.S.-Iran tensions, and after U.S. stocks shot to new highs overnight.
Asian Markets
- In Japan, the Nikkei 225 rose 0.47% to close at 23,850.57, while the Topix was up 0.35% to 1,735.16.
- The Kospi jumped 0.91% to close at 2,206.39.
- The Shanghai composite inched down to close at 3,092.29.
- The Shenzhen composite fell 0.18% to 1,797.35 and the Shenzhen component dropped 0.17% to 10,879.84.
- Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index, however, climbed 0.19% in its final hour of trade.
- MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.48%.
Currencies Markets
- The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, continued to strengthen, building on gains through the week. It was last at 97.412.
- The safe-haven Japanese yen traded at 109.56 versus the greenback, pulling back after strengthening earlier in the week.
- The Australian dollar was at around $0.6877, continuing its slide through the week.
Oil Prices
- Oil prices on Thursday slipped to levels near prices before U.S.-Iran tensions shot up.
- During the afternoon of Asia hours on Friday, prices continued falling. U.S. crude futures dropped 0.15% to $59.46 per barrel.
- Brent crude was down 0.12% to $65.30 per barrel.
Source: Reuters.com