Asian shares mostly rebound after Trump hints at possible end to Iran war

TOKYO, March 24, (AP): Asian benchmarks mostly rebounded Tuesday, echoing cautious relief that swept through Wall Street after President Donald Trump said the United States has talked with Iran about a possible end to their war. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 added 1.1% in morning trading to 52,093.02, recovering some of the losses it suffered the previous day.

Toyota Motor Corp.'s stock price gained 1.1% in morning trading after it announced overnight that it was investing $1 billion in its Kentucky and Indiana auto plants. That's part of a plan to invest up to $10 billion in the US over the next five years that the Japanese automaker announced in November. Japanese manufacturers have been eager to show their contribution to American jobs and economic growth.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.5% to 8,404.00. South Korea's Kospi jumped 2.2% to 5,526.24. Global markets have been on a roller coaster ride over worries about the war in Iran, which began in late February, especially nations in Asia, which are severely affected by any lack of access to the Strait of Hormuz, crucial for energy shipments from the Middle East.

In energy trading, benchmark US crude gained $2.02 to $90.15 a barrel. Brent crude the international standard, added $1.41 to $101.35 a barrel, reversing course from the easing overnight on Wall Street. On Wall Street, the price for a barrel of Brent crude fell 10.9% to settle at $99.94, down from nearly $120 at one point last week, after Trump said the United States and Iran held productive talks "regarding a complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East” over the last two days.

Iran denied such talks took place and Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf said that "fakenews is used to manipulate the financial and oil markets” in a post on X. Over the weekend, Trump had threatened to "obliterate” Iran’s power plants if it doesn’t open up the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours. The narrow waterway off Iran’s coast has become a sore point for Trump and the economy because a sharp slowdown in traffic is preventing oil tankers from leaving the Persian Gulf to supply customers around the world.

On Monday, the S&P 500 rose 74.52 points to 6,581.00. The Dow Jones Industrial Average went from a surge of nearly 1,135 points during the morning to a more modest gain of 540 before accelerating to finish with a climb of 631, or 1.4%, to 46,208.47. The Nasdaq composite jumped 299.15, or 1.4%, to 21,946.76.