- Asia-Pacific markets opened mixed amid concerns over Hormuz Strait energy disruptions
- Kospi dropped 0.76%, Kosdaq fell 1.4%, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.15%
- Iran nears deal with Oman to reopen Hormuz Strait but resists direct US talks
Asian Markets Today | Aug. 11: Asia-Pacific markets opened mixed Tuesday, as worries of a prolonged disruption to energy flows via the Hormuz Strait take hold. South Korea's Kospi was down 0.76%, while the tech-heavy small-cap benchmark Kosdaq lost 1.4%. Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 edged up 0.15%. Japan's financial markets were closed for the holiday.
Iran has said it is closing in on a deal with Oman to reopen the Strait of Hormuz sea route, but Tehran has continued to resist direct negotiations with the US until several conditions are met. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Sunday there was "no possibility of restarting negotiations" as long as the US continues violating the June memorandum of understanding and does not compensate Iran for those violations, according to the semi-official Tasnim News Agency.
US-Iran Deal Uncertainty Spikes Oil Prices
Crude oil held on to a four-day advance as fresh demands from US President Donald Trump raised doubts over the prospects of a deal that could restore traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. Brent crude traded near $88 a barrel after surging almost 5% in the previous session, while West Texas Intermediate hovered around $82. Trump said Iran would have to compensate the US for people it has killed in conflicts, adding that the demand would be put "firmly into any, and all, future negotiations."
Around one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments passed through Hormuz before the war, making the waterway a key pressure point for energy markets. Any delay in restoring regular shipping is keeping traders focused on the ongoing supply risks. Reopening the global flow of crude oil through Hormuz could mitigate concerns over heightened energy prices that have spurred inflation worries and led to concerns that central banks would have to raise benchmark interest rates.
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US Markets
Nasdaq and S&P 500 closed lower on Monday, with declines in Intel and other chipmakers, as investors became less confident about a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The S&P 500 declined 0.06% to end the session at 7,753.12 points.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq declined 0.32% to 26,605.36 points, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.11% to 53,976.04 points. Reports later this week could offer clues on the US Federal Reserve's monetary policy path.
Intel was a key laggard of the session, falling 4% after the company said it's going to be offering $15 billion in common stock. Other laggards include Nvidia and Apple, which dropped 2.9% and 1.5%, respectively. Data on Friday that showed US employers unexpectedly shed 23,000 jobs in July prompted traders to cut odds of a Federal Reserve interest-rate hike in September. Traders now price in a 52% chance of a rate hike in September, according to the CME FedWatch tool.
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