Oil rises following tit-for-tat strikes by the U.S. and Iran
Oil rose Wednesday, as Mideast tensions continue to escalate after the U.S. carried out its latest round of attacks on Iran, while Tehran reportedly struck back at U.S. allies.
Futures for international benchmark Brent crude for November delivery advanced 0.92% at $95.52 a barrel, paring earlier gains. U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures for October rose 0.60% to $90.76 per barrel.
“The longer the war with Iran goes on, oil prices will continue to stay elevated and volatile,” said Edward Rosenberg, head of ETFs at Strategy Shares. “Sanctions, stalled negotiations, and mixed signals on whether Iran wants the war to end are swinging prices day to day, not just holding them high.”
—Justina Lee
Japanese green tea giant Ito En surges 8%, defying a broad market sell-off
Shares of Japanese beverage maker Ito En surged more than 8% Wednesday, following its fiscal first-quarter results, bucking a broader drop in the country’s stocks.
The maker of Oi Ocha green tea on Tuesday reported operating profit of 10.2 billion yen ($63.7 million) for the three months from May through July, up 22% from a year earlier. Revenue rose 3.3% to 135.18 billion yen over the same period.
Operating profit came in well above Citi’s forecast of 7.7 billion yen. The bank had expected profit to decline on the back of higher raw material and tea leaf costs, as well as expenses related to the company’s vending machine business.
—Jenny Lee
Australia posts second-quarter growth of 2.1%, beating expectations
Australia’s economic growth beat expectations in the second quarter, expanding 2.1% year on year, data released Wednesday showed.
Economists polled by Reuters had estimated growth at 1.8%, while the economy had expanded by 2.5% in the prior quarter.
On a quarter-on-quarter basis, GDP rose 0.4%, also marginally surpassing expectations of 0.3%. The slight growth was driven by private demand and mining exports.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics said in its statement that households continued to behave cautiously, with spending remaining subdued and rising just 0.4%. Households reduced fuel consumption due to elevated prices owed to the Middle East conflict, and cut domestic and international travel.
—Lim Hui Jie
Mainland China and Hong Kong benchmark indexes open lower
Mainland China and Hong Kong indexes opened lower as Asian markets saw a broad decline.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was down 1.09%, while mainland China’s CSI 300 dropped nearly 1%.
The declines in Hang Seng were led by basic materials and industrials sectors, down 3.74% and 3.19%, respectively.
—Justina Lee
Asia-Pacific markets open lower, tracking Wall Street losses
Asia-Pacific markets traded lower early Wednesday, amid concerns over elevated oil prices and higher bond yields and escalating Middle East tensions.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 declined 1.60% while the Topix dropped 1.44%.
The Kospi fell 2.87% at open, while the small-cap Kosdaq declined 2.51%.
Australia’s benchmark S&P/ASX 200 was 1.09% lower.
—Justina Lee
Asia-Pacific markets set to open lower as Mideast tensions, higher bond yields dent sentiment
Asia-Pacific markets were set to open broadly lower Wednesday, tracking Wall Street losses amid worries over escalating Middle East tensions, elevated oil prices and higher bond yields.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 was poised to decline, with the Chicago futures contract at 64,845 and its Osaka counterpart last trading at 64,880, compared with the index’s previous close of 66,215.34.
Hong Kong Hang Seng index futures were at 25,176, compared with the index’s last close of 25,329.73.
Futures for Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 last traded at 8,933, while the index closed at 9,066.70.
Tensions between Iran and the U.S. continue to escalate, after the U.S. carried out its latest round of attacks on Iran.
The U.S. Central Command said in a X post, the strikes “follow recent attempted attacks by the IRGC against commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and against American service members.”
A tanker was struck by three unknown projectiles while transiting Hormuz on Monday, the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations Centre said in an incident report
—Justina Lee
See the stocks moving after hours
These are some of the stocks moving after hours:
- Dell Technologies — Shares of the computer maker jumped almost 9% after beating expectations on both lines. Dell also lifted its forecast for the fiscal 2027 year, citing strength in the artificial intelligence service business.
- MongoDB — The data developer shares dropped 12% despite posting better-than-expected earnings and upbeat guidance. MongoDB said it earned $1.90 per share, excluding items, on $772 million in the second quarter, while analysts surveyed by LSEG forecasted $1.61 a share and $734 million.
- Credo Technology — Shares of the connectivity stock slid almost 4% after its non-GAAP gross margin for the first quarter came in at 68%, while analysts polled by LSEG penciled in 68.3%. However, Credo beat expectations on both lines for the first quarter.
— Alex Harring
Stock futures are near flat
Futures tied to the Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 are all near flat shortly after 6 p.m. ET Tuesday.
— Alex Harring
