HONG KONG (AP) 鈥� Shares were mixed in Asia and oil prices slipped on Thursday as conflict escalated in the Middle East, with launching
U.S. futures advanced.
The United States launched more airstrikes on Iran, and Iran responded by firing at Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar, a day after U.S. President Donald Trump said their temporary ceasefire was 鈥渙ver.鈥� The prospects for a lasting peace remained uncertain, with high-level talks seeking to on ending the war still underway, according to a regional intelligence official involved in the mediation efforts who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the delicate behind-the-scenes negotiations.
Tokyo鈥檚 Nikkei 225 reversed some of its losses from earlier in the week, gaining 1.4% to 67,743.85, helped by technology-related shares. Chip equipment maker Tokyo Electron jumped 5.5%, and artificial intelligence-focused investment holding firm SoftBank Group slipped 0.1%.
South Korea鈥檚 Kospi index zigzagged, rising 0.6% to 7,291.91 despite a loss earlier in the day. It fell 5.4% on Wednesday. Samsung Electronics was up 0.2% on Thursday, while memory chipmaker SK Hynix gained 5.3%.
The Shanghai Composite index traded 1.7% higher at 4,036.59, even as China鈥檚 producer price index rose 4.1% in June compared to a year earlier. That was higher than May鈥檚 3.9%, as some economists attribute the accelerating inflation to rising costs due to the Iran war.
Hong Kong鈥檚 Hang Seng shed 0.7% to 24,027.97. Shares of Apple supplier Luxshare fell 2.5% in its trading debut in Hong Kong. Chinese AI company Zhipu, or Z.ai, surged 9.3% after it said it’s raising about $4 billion through a share sale.
Australia鈥檚 S&P/ASX 200 shed 0.3% to 8,762.50.
Taiwan鈥檚 Taiex fell 0.8%, and India鈥檚 Sensex climbed 0.7%.
Oil prices fell back early Thursday, with Brent crude, the international standard, falling $1 to $77.00 per barrel. It briefly topped $80 on Wednesday. Before the Iran war began, Brent oil was trading at around $72 a barrel. Earlier optimism over an interim peace deal recently brought it back to prewar levels.
Benchmark U.S. crude declined 83 cents to $72.69 a barrel.
On Wednesday, Wall Street鈥檚 benchmark S&P 500 ended 0.3% lower at 7,482.71. It after Trump鈥檚 .
The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 1.1% to 52,348.39, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq composite edged up 0.2% following an earlier loss to 25,870.65.
U.S. chipmaker Broadcom surged 4.8%, after Apple committed to a multiyear partnership with the company.
In other dealings, the U.S. dollar fell to 162.37 Japanese yen from 162.59 yen. The euro was trading at $1.1438, up from $1.1417.
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