Asian Markets Trade Mostly Lower

(RTTNews) - Asian stock markets are trading mostly lower on Monday, despite the broadly positive cues from Wall Street on Friday, amid continued uncertainty over the opening of the Strait of Hormuz after US President Donald Trump said the U.S. naval blockade would remain in place until Iran is ready to make a deal. Asian markets closed mixed on Friday.

Trump also announced crushing economic measures against Iran on a scale never seen before with an aim to isolate Iran and any nation supporting Iran would face similar consequences.

The Australian stock market is notably higher on Monday, reversing the losses in the previous session, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street on Friday. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index is moving up to near the 9,100.00 level, with gains in iron ore miners and technology stocks partially offset by weakness in energy and financial stocks.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 56.70 points or 0.63 percent to 9,115.60, after touching a high of 9,131.30 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 60.80 points or 0.66 percent to 9,330.50. Australian stocks closed modestly lower on Friday.

Among the major miners, Fortescue and Mineral Resources are gaining more than 2 percent each, while Rio Tinto is up more than 1 percent and BHP Group is adding more than 3 percent.

Oil stocks are mostly lower. Beach energy and Origin Energy are losing more than 1 percent each, while Woodside Energy is down almost 1 percent and Santos is slipping more than 2 percent.

Among tech stocks, Afterpay owner Block and Xero are gaining almost 2 percent each, while WiseTech Global is up almost 1 percent and Appen is advancing more than 2 percent, while Zip is losing more than 2 percent.

Gold miners are mixedc. Resolute Mining is losing more than 1 percent and Genesis Minerals is edging down 0.2 percent, while Newmont is gaining almost 2 percent and Evolution Mining is edging up 0.5 percent. Northern Star Resources is relatively flat.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank is declining almost 2 percent, while Westpac, National Australia Bank and ANZ Banking are losing almost 1 percent each. In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.717 on Monday.

The Japanese stock market is slightly lower in choppy trading on Monday, extending the losses in the previous session, despite the broadly positive cues from Wall Street on Friday. The Nikkei 225 is falling well below the 66,000 level, with weakness in index heavyweights, automakers and financial stocks partially offset by gains in exporter and technology stocks.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 65,968.71, down 47.65 points or 0.07 percent, after hitting a low of 65,653.39 earlier. Japanese shares ended modestly lower on Friday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is losing almost 3 percent and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is edging down 0.4 2 percent. Among automakers, Honda is sliding more than 1 percent and Toyota is also losing more than 1 percent.

In the tech space, Advantest is down almost 1 percent, while Tokyo Electron is gaining almost 2 percent and Screen Holdings is adding almost 3 percent.

In the banking sector, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial are declining almost 1 percent each, while Mizuho Financial is edging down 0.3 percent.

The major exporters are mostly higher. Mitsubishi Electric and Canon are edging up 0.2 percent each, while Panasonic and Sony are gaining almost 2 percent each.

Among the other major gainers, Sumitomo Metal Mining is surging almost 6 percent and Hitachi Construction Machinery is advancing more than 4 percent, while Sumitomo Heavy Industries and Mitsubishi Materials are gaining almost 4 percent each. Komatsu and SHIFT are adding more than 3 percent each, while Dowa Holdings, Taiyo Yuden and Sumco are up almost 3 percent each.

Conversely, Mercari is sliding more than 4 percent, while Tokyo Electric Power and Fujikura are slipping more than 3 percent each. Kansai Electric Power is declining almost 3 percent.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the higher 158 yen-range on Monday.

Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea and Hong Kong are down 2.4 and 1.9 percent, respectively. New Zealand, China, Malaysia, Indonesia and Taiwan are lower by between 0.1 and 0.5 percent each. Singapore is bucking the trend and is up 0.1 percent.

On Wall Street, stocks moved back to the upside during trading on Friday following the sell-off seen during the previous session. The major averages all moved notably higher on the day, with the Dow showing a notable advance.

The major averages all ended the day in positive territory. The Dow jumped 517.80 points or 1 percent to 53,277.01, the Nasdaq climbed 113.29 points or 0.4 percent to 26,180.45 and the S&P 500 rose 33.21 points or 0.4 percent at 7,674.37.

The major European markets all also moved to the upside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index rose by 0.4 percent, the German DAX Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index both climbed by 0.6 percent.

Crude oil prices edged higher on Friday as the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, heightening supply concerns. West Texas Intermediate crude for October delivery was up $0.44 or 0.51 percent at $87.27 per barrel.