Asian Shares Slip As Investors Await Clarity On US-Iran Peace Talks

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks ended lower on Friday, snapping a three-day rally as investors sought more clarity regarding further developments in a potential U.S.-Iran peace deal ahead of the expiry of a two-week truce next week.

The dollar headed for its second weekly loss, reflecting improving appetite for riskier assets.

Gold fluctuated in a narrow range and Treasuries were little changed, while global crude benchmark Brent slipped nearly 1 percent toward $98 a barrel amid high levels of investor fatigue related to the war in the Gulf region.

U.S. President Donald Trump expressed optimism about a permanent truce while announcing the deployment of additional 10,000 troops to bolster U.S. military presence in the region.

China's Shanghai Composite index slipped 0.10 percent to 4,051.43 while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 0.89 percent to 26,160.33.

Trump claimed Chinese President Xi Jinping had assured him that Beijing will not supply weapons to Iran. China has firmly rejected the allegations and warned that any economic retaliation such as tariff increases would trigger countermeasures.

Japanese markets fell sharply after touching record highs in the previous session. The Nikkei average slumped 1.75 percent to 58,475.90, with chip-related and other tech stocks coming under selling pressure.

Advantest fell 2.6 percent, SoftBank Group declined 3.1 percent and Tokyo Electron gave up 4 percent. The broader Topix index settled 1.41 percent lower at 3,760.81.

Seoul stocks snapped a three-day rise ahead of a possible second round of U.S.-Iran peace talks. The Kospi average dropped 0.55 percent to 6,191.92 despite Israel and Lebanon agreeing to a tentative ceasefire. SK Hynix fell 2.3 percent and Hanwha Aerospace plunged 6.3 percent.

Australian markets ended marginally lower as banks and miners declined, offsetting a surge in technology stocks after U.S. streaming giant Netflix reported stronger-than-expected profits in the first quarter.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index fell 1.23 percent to 12,905.67 on worries about the impact of the global energy shock.

Overnight, U.S. stocks eked out modest gains after reports emerged that the U.S. and Iran may extend the ceasefire by two weeks in order to allow more time for talks.

Uncertainty around the Iran war and rising oil prices capped the upside as defense secretary Pete Hegseth criticized media coverage of the war on Iran and warned Iran of restarting devastating military strikes against Tehran's critical infrastructure, if the two nations fail to reach a peace agreement.

In economic news, new applications for employment benefits fell more than expected last week, but manufacturing unexpectedly lost momentum in March after two straight months of solid gains, separate reports showed.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 gained 0.4 percent and 0.3 percent, respectively to reach new record closing highs as Trump announced a 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon. The narrower Dow edged up by 0.2 percent.