Oil Prices Surge Amid Ongoing Iran Conflict Tensions
Asian markets are mostly higher today, after US stocks slipped from their records. The Kospi in South Korea is up 4% on renewed buying of computer chipmakers. Samsung Electronics has gained 7.7%, and memory chipmaker SK Hynix is up 7.1%. In contrast, the Hang Seng in Hong Kong fell 1.2% to 25,352.13.
The price of Brent crude oil is up 0.9% at $89.67, due to ongoing concerns over the Iran conflict and its impact on global supply. The US government will release inflation data later today, which could influence interest rates and put pressure on the Federal Reserve.
Treasury yields have jumped since the war with Iran, causing long-term mortgage rates to reach their highest levels in a year. Meanwhile, the US dollar rose to 159.41 Japanese yen from 159.30 yen, while the euro slipped to $1.1535 from $1.1544.