Asia-Pacific markets rebound with Kospi jumping 5% as Trump says Iran war could end in weeks
IBARAKI, JAPAN – JUNE 17: Technicians at work in the clean room of the Fab Equipment at a semiconductor company, Renesas Technology Corp. on June 17, 2004 in Ibaraki, Japan. Renesas is the first company to produce semiconductor products from 300mm wafer in the world. (Photo by Koichi Kamoshida/Getty Images)
Koichi Kamoshida | Getty Images Entertainment | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets rebounded Wednesday after statements from U.S. President Donald Trump raised hopes that the Iran war could be coming to an end soon.
On Tuesday stateside, Trump said the U.S. could leave Iran in “two or three weeks,” adding “We leave because there’s no reason for us to do this.”
U.S. crude futures were up 0.44% at $101.81 a barrel as of 7.40 p.m. ET.
South Korea’s Kospi led gains in the region, surging almost 5% in early trade, while the small-cap Kosdaq gained 4.13%. Stocks rose as South Korean exports in March surged 48.3% year on year compared to Reuters poll estimates of 44.9%.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 also saw a 3.51% gain, with the broad based Topix up 3.17%.
The Bank of Japan released its Tankan survey for the first quarter of 2026, which measures business sentiment among large Japanese companies.
Business optimism among large Japanese manufacturers climbed to 17 from 15, beating expectations of 16 from economists polled by Reuters and reaching its highest level since the fourth quarter of 2021.
Large non-manufacturers’ business sentiment stood at 36, holding at a multi-decade high as per LSEG data, and same as last quarter’s revised 36.
That also defied Reuters poll expectations of 33.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was 1.76% higher, driven by a rise in educational services stocks.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures last traded at 25,191, compared with HSI’s last close of 24,788.14.
Overnight in the U.S., all three major indexes posted their best day since May, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 2.49%.
The S&P 500 gained 2.91%, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 3.83%.
The moves followed an unconfirmed report that Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian was open to ending the war with guarantees.
—CNBC’s Sean Conlon, Sarah Min and Lisa Kailai Han contributed to this report.
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