A screen displays the Nikkei 225 Stock Average figure on the trading floor at the Nomura Securities Co. headquarters in Tokyo, Japan, on Jan. 11, 2024.
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South Korean stocks rose Monday to hit a fresh record, following their strongest monthly gain in April, as investors weighed tensions between Iran and the U.S. and a U.S. plan to reopen shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
The U.S. would attempt to “free” stranded ships affected by the Strait of Hormuz closure since the start of the Iran war, U.S. President Trump said in his Truth Social post Sunday.
Dubbed “Project Freedom,” the effort is set to begin on Monday, Middle East time and will focus mainly on getting civilian ships flagged in countries not affiliated with the conflict out of the contested waterway so they can “freely and ably get on with their business.”
“U.S. military support to Project Freedom will include guided-missile destroyers, over 100 land and sea-based aircraft, multi-domain unmanned platforms, and 15,000 service members,” the U.S. Central Command said shortly after Trump’s announcement.
Oil prices were volatile as investors continued to assess President Trump’s “Project Freedom” plan. West Texas Intermediate futures for July delivery fell 0.20% to $101.74 per barrel in the early hours of Monday ET. International benchmark Brent crude futures was 0.06% lower at $108.08 per barrel.
Other Asia-Pacific indexes were mostly higher. The Kospi index rose 4.44%. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix both rose to record intraday highs, gaining over 4% and 12% respectively, buoyed by positive sentiment following U.S. tech earnings.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index gained 1.71%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.48%. India’s Nifty 50 extended early gains, rising 1.04%,
Markets in Japan and China are closed for a public holiday.
