Asian Shares Climb On Middle East Truce Hopes

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks rallied on Wednesday after U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. and Iran were "in negotiations right now" and they "want to make a deal so badly".

While Tehran dismissed the U.S. president's claim of talks, a slew of media reports suggested that efforts towards a diplomatic solution have intensified. Oil prices fell nearly 4 percent in Asian trade in anticipation of a de-escalation of the Middle East war.

As diplomatic efforts gather pace, Iran has told the United Nations Security Council and the International Maritime Organization that "non-hostile vessels" may transit the Strait of Hormuz, with Tehran's consent.

Gold jumped nearly 2 percent to $4,560 an ounce as the dollar weakened and bond yields declined on easing Middle East tensions.

China's Shanghai Composite index climbed 1.30 percent to 3,931.84 after state media highlighted a sharp increase in domestic AI model adoption and a surge in token usage they generate.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index advanced 1.09 percent to 25,335.95. Shares of delivery platform Meituan jumped almost 14 percent after authorities urged the industry to end a bleeding war.

Japanese markets rallied and the yen softened as Bank of Japan (BoJ) board members shared their views on the monetary policy outlook.

As per the BoJ Minutes of the January meeting, many board members saw the need to keep raising interest rates to address mounting inflationary pressures and the weak yen's impact on prices.

The Nikkei average soared 2.87 percent to 53,749.62 while the broader Topix index settled 2.57 percent higher at 3,650.99.

Seoul stocks rose sharply as optimism grew over Washington's efforts to end the nearly month-long battle in the Middle East. The Kospi index surged 1.59 percent to 5,642.21, led by defense stocks.

Hanwha Aerospace rose 4.9 percent, Hyundai Rotem added 7.2 percent and LIG Nex1 soared 14.5 percent.

Australian markets logged their biggest single-day gain since February 9 after the annual inflation rate eased slightly in February.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 climbed 1.85 percent to 8,534.30, led by strong gains in the materials sector. The broader All Ordinaries index closed up 2.03 percent at 8,745.30.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index surged 1.79 percent to 12,929.30, snapping a four-session losing streak.

U.S. stocks ended lower in volatile trading overnight as benchmark Brent crude futures surged back above $100 a barrel and bonds fell amid lingering uncertainty over tensions in the Middle East.

After Iran denied that it had engaged in negotiations with the United States, President Trump reiterated that top U.S. negotiators and their Iranian counterparts have been engaged in "very, very strong talks," adding that Iran gave him a "very big present" as a gesture of good faith in talks. He pointed out that it was connected to the Strait of Hormuz flows.

In contrast, media reports claimed that Gulf Arab neighbors are considering joining the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran and that the U.S. plans to deploy approximately 3,000 troops to the Middle East to support a war against Iran.

Additionally, it was reported that Iran's military has started charging transit fees on some commercial vessels passing the Strait of Hormuz, establishing an informal toll on the world's most important waterway.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gave up 0.8 percent, the S&P 500 dipped 0.4 percent and the Dow eased 0.2 percent.