Asian Stocks Rise in Early Trading as Oil Retreats: Markets Wrap
(Bloomberg) — Asian equities advanced early on Friday after US stocks rebounded from session lows and oil retreated amid efforts by the US and Israel to ease concerns over the Iran war.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index was up 0.2%, after losing 2.6% on Thursday — when strikes on energy assets in the Middle East stoked fears of a prolonged economic impact from the war. S&P 500 futures also edged higher after the underlying benchmark finished the last session down 0.3%, recovering from a 1% drop. Japanese markets were shut for a holiday, meaning there will be no cash trading in Treasuries during Asian hours.
Brent crude declined from its highest close since July 2022 to trade near $107 per barrel on Friday.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel will no longer target energy infrastructure, adding that the war will end a lot faster than people think as Iran is no longer able to enrich uranium or manufacture ballistic missiles. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump told reporters he’s “not putting troops anywhere” after being asked about the possibility of deploying ground troops.
“Markets are positive as this time the narrative to deescalate tension in the Middle East looks more promising than before,” said Anna Wu, a cross asset strategist at Van Eck Associates Corp. in Sydney. “The narrative from the US side looks slightly more promising, but the consensus changes by the day.”
Traders are parsing every geopolitical headline as the conflict has upended the energy supply chain. Prices of gasoline and jet fuel have surged while cooking gas shortages have triggered fistfights in India. The International Energy Agency has called the war the biggest supply disruption in the history of the oil market.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent noted the US is looking to remove sanctions that it has long imposed on Iranian oil in an effort to lower surging energy prices. The White House doesn’t plan to ban the export of oil and gas, an official said Thursday.
Risks of a global inflation shock have also complicated the policy outlook for global central banks. Investors in bond markets around the world are rushing to bet on higher interest rates amid the jump in energy prices.
The UK’s two-year rate jumped 31 basis points to 4.40% after the Bank of England on Thursday said it “stands ready” to act to prevent inflation from accelerating. The US Treasury 10-year yield fell two basis points to 4.25%. However, the policy-sensitive two-year yield rose two basis points to 3.79%.
As the war reduces prospects for a US interest-rate cut in the near term, gold is heading for the biggest weekly loss in six years. The precious metal — widely viewed as a haven — has dropped every week since the US and Israel attacked Iran last month.
“The market is looking for an off-ramp, the market is looking for a ceasefire,” Bank of America strategist Michael Hartnett said in an interview on Bloomberg Television. Financial conditions have been tightening, but the Federal Reserve finds it tough to address the squeeze if oil prices are high, he added.
Corporate Highlights:
Micron Technology Inc. warned that it will need to spend heavily on production to meet burgeoning demand, overshadowing a generally upbeat forecast. Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. aims to quintuple cloud and AI revenue to $100 billion annually in five years. One of Eli Lilly & Co.’s most highly anticipated experimental medicines helped diabetic patients lose more weight than any drug currently on the market. Darden Restaurants Inc. raised its full-year outlook as it expects an extra week of promotions at Olive Garden to lift sales. Uber Technologies Inc. plans to invest as much as $1.25 billion in Rivian Automotive Inc. to help launch a robotaxi fleet that will be available in the US, Canada and Europe over the next five years. Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
S&P 500 futures rose 0.2% as of 10:01 a.m. Tokyo time Nikkei 225 futures (OSE) rose 0.2% Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.6% Euro Stoxx 50 futures rose 0.7% Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed The euro fell 0.1% to $1.1577 The Japanese yen was little changed at 157.83 per dollar The offshore yuan was little changed at 6.8830 per dollar Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin fell 0.3% to $70,309.73 Ether rose 0.2% to $2,150.4 Bonds
Japan’s 10-year yield advanced 5.5 basis points to 2.260% Australia’s 10-year yield was little changed at 4.98% Commodities
West Texas Intermediate crude fell 1.4% to $94.20 a barrel Spot gold rose 0.2% to $4,660.57 an ounce This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Richard Henderson, Abhishek Vishnoi and David Finnerty.
©2026 Bloomberg L.P.
