Asian shares scale six-week peak on hopes for US-Iran peace talks

SYDNEY: Asian stocks tracked Wall Street higher on Wednesday as hopes for a resumption of US-Iran peace talks pushed oil prices lower, while the dollar steadied after seven days of losses.

President Donald Trump said talks with Iran could resume in Pakistan over the next two days, after the collapse of weekend negotiations prompted Washington to impose a blockade on Iranian ports.

Pakistani and Iranian officials also said negotiations could restart.

Signs that diplomatic engagement would continue helped calm markets, pushing benchmark oil prices firmly below $100 a barrel. Brent crude futures fell 0.7% to $94.13 a barrel, having slumped almost 5% overnight.

Stock investors cheered, with MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan gaining 1.5% to the highest level in six weeks.

Japan’s Nikkei also climbed 1.2% to 58,561 points, closing in on the record high of 59,332.43 from late February.

Chinese blue-chips rose 0.5% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index gained 1.2%.

“The impressive price action in risk assets suggests markets are keen to look through the immediate impact of the Middle East conflict,” said Tony Sycamore, an analyst at IG.

“There is a growing expectation that the standoff will soon be resolved, allowing the US administration to pivot towards declaring victory, before stimulating the economy ahead of the midterms.”

Overnight on Wall Street, the Nasdaq climbed 2% to chalk up its 10th straight day of gains and the S&P 500 flirted with a record closing high. US producer inflation data also provided some encouragement as prices rose by less than economists expected in March, helping temper fears around war-driven inflation.

Investor optimism that the Iran war may wind down soon also supported Treasuries, which have taken a beating recently on inflation worries. The two-year US Treasury yield slipped 1 basis point (bp) to 3.704% on Wednesday, having fallen 3 bps overnight.

The 10-year yield was also down 1 bp at 4.2439%, after dropping 4 bps overnight.

The safe-haven US dollar stabilised after falling for a seventh straight session overnight.

The euro held steady at $1.1791, having hit a six-week top of $1.1811 overnight.

Gold prices added 0.1% to $4,846 an ounce.

With the flow of oil still effectively cut off through the Strait of Hormuz, the International Monetary Fund on Tuesday lowered its growth outlook and warned that the global economy would teeter on the brink of recession if the conflict worsens.