Asian Markets Trade Mostly Lower

(RTTNews) - Asian markets are trading mostly lower on Thursday, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight, as the joint U.S.-Israeli strikes against Iran continue unabated, leading to a fresh surge in crude oil price that reinforced global inflationary concerns. Reports of Iran seeking to mine the Strait of Hormuz have also added to concerns about shipping through the vital waterway. Asian markets closed mostly higher on Wednesday.

Tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has dropped to two per day from an earlier average of 138 vessels per day. Nearly 150 tankers are anchoring in open gulf waters while nearly 147 container ships are trapped inside the Persian Gulf, struggling to find a way out. Around 20% of the world's oil and energy transit takes place through the Strait of Hormuz.

The blockade has resulted in "production pauses" by the largest oil producers in the Middle East, amounting to more than 5 million barrels per day of reduction.

The Australian market is trading sharply lower on Thursday, reversing some of the gains in the previous two sessions, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is falling well below the 8,650 level, with losses across most sectors led by mining and technology stocks. Energy stocks are the only bright spot.

Spiking crude oil prices have fueled inflation concerns and raised expectations of a rate hike by the Reserve Bank of Australia as early as next week, with officials warning that higher energy costs could push inflation above its target band.

Markets are now pricing in about a 75 percent chance of a rate hike next week, up from less than 30 percent earlier this week.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 120.40 points or 1.38 percent to 8,623.10, after hitting a low of 8,605.60 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 128.80 points or 1.44 percent to 8,848.00. Australian stocks ended notably higher on Wednesday.

Among major miners, Rio Tinto and Mineral Resources are down more than 1 percent each, while Fortescue is declining more than 2 percent and BHP Group is losing almost 2 percent.

Oil stocks are mostly higher. Santos and Woodside Energy are adding more than 1 percent each, while Beach energy is gaining almost 3 percent. Origin Energy is flat.

In the tech space, Afterpay owner Block is declining almost 4 percent, Xero is sliding almost 6 percent and Appen is slipping more than 4 percent, while WiseTech Global and Zip are tumbling more than 5 percent each.

Among the big four banks, Westpac and Commonwealth Bank are losing more than 1 percent each, while ANZ Banking is down more than 2 percent and National Australia Bank is declining almost 2 percent.

Among gold miners, Resolute Mining is declining more than 3 percent and Newmont is slipping more than 2 percent, while Genesis Minerals, Evolution Mining and Northern Star Resources are losing more than 1 percent each.

In economic news, Australia's consumer inflation expectations rose to 5.2 percent in March 2026 from 5.0 percent in the February 2026, marking the highest level since July 2023, ahead of the Reserve Bank of Australia's policy meeting on March 17.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.715 on Thursday.

The Japanese market is sharply lower on Thursday, reversing some of the gains in the previous two sessions, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight. The Nikkei 225 is falling below the 54,200 level, with weakness across most sectors led by financial and technology stocks.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 54,177.15, down 848.22 points or 1.54 percent, after hitting a low of 54,107.16 earlier. Japanese shares ended sharply higher on Wednesday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is losing more than 3 percent, while Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is edging up 0.4 percent. Among automakers, Toyota is losing more than 1 percent and Honda is declining almost 2 percent.

In the tech space, Advantest and Screen Holdings are losing more than 2 percent each, while Tokyo Electron is down almost 2 percent.

In the banking sector, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is down more than 1 percent, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is losing more than 2 percent and Mizuho Financial is declining almost 3 percent.

Among the major exporters, Mitsubishi Electric is edging down 0.3 percent and Canon is down more than 1 percent, while Sony and Panasonic are losing almost 1 percent each.

Among other major losers, SHIFT is losing more than 4 percent, while Japan Exchange and Kikkoman are declining almost 4 percent each. Sapporo Holdings, Mitsui Fudosan, Sumitomo Pharma, Sumitomo Realty & Development, Daiwa Securities, Mitsubishi Estate and Credit Saison are slipping more than 3 percent each, while Denka, Secom, Tokyo Tatemono and Dai Nippon Printing are down almost 3 percent each.

Conversely, Kawasaki Heavy Industries is gaining almost 4 percent.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the higher 158 yen-range on Thursday.

Elsewhere in Asia, Taiwan is down 1.1 percent, while New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, Malaysia and Indonesia are lower by between 0.2 and 0.8 percent each. China is bucking the trend and is up 0.2 percent.

On Wall Street, stocks showed a lack of direction over the course of the trading day on Wednesday, extending the lackluster performance seen in the previous session. The major averages once again spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line.

The major averages eventually closed mixed for the second straight day. While the Nasdaq inched up 19.03 points or 0.1 percent to 22,716.13, the S&P 500 edged down 5.68 points or 0.1 percent to 6,775.80 and the Dow slid 289.24 points or 0.6 percent to 47,417.27.

Meanwhile, the major European markets moved to the downside on the day. While the German DAX Index tumbled by 1.4 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index fell by 0.6 percent and the French CAC 40 Index dipped percent.

Crude oil prices skyrocketed on Wednesday as the Middle East conflict fails to show any indication of calming down soon. West Texas Intermediate crude for April delivery was up $4.21 or 5.04 percent at $87.66 per barrel.