Asian Markets Struggle Amid US-Iran Tensions and Mixed Economic Data

The Japanese yen surged on September 8, while Asian markets struggled for direction. Japan's Nikkei 225 index fluctuated between gains and losses before edging up 0.2 per cent.

Meanwhile, the yen jumped as much as 0.6 per cent to 153.51, its strongest level since February 18.

The MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.2 per cent, led by a 1.2 per cent gain in South Korea's KOSPI.

US Labour Day made for a somewhat quieter start to the week for trading volumes, but the weekend's tit-for-tat strikes between the US and Iran continued to put upward pressure on oil prices, acting as a drag on risk sentiment more broadly, according to Westpac analysts.

Oil prices moved higher for a third day, with Brent crude futures edging up 0.04 per cent to $97.04 a barrel.

The yield on the US 10-year Treasury bond was up 0.6 basis points at 4.788 per cent, with traders still pricing an implied 60 per cent probability of a 25-basis-points hike at its next two-day meeting on September 16.