Trump Signals Iran Strikes; Oil Surges, Asian Equities Plunge

Trump's primetime address, where he stated the U.S. would "hit them extremely hard over the next two to three weeks" and "bring them back to the stone ages," renewed concerns over Middle East supply disruptions. He also urged allies to protect the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has effectively shut.

Westpac Strategy group analysts confirmed the speech "undone the de-escalation trade," re-tabling the threat of a "decisive final strike." Asian equity markets reversed early gains, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average falling 2.3%, South Korea's Kospi dropping 4.4%, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index losing 1.1%. Nomura analysts advised caution on Indian, Indonesian, and Philippine equities due to growth and earnings risks, expecting Malaysian, Hong Kong, and Chinese markets to be relatively resilient.

Precious metals also fell, with spot gold down 1.6% at $4,680.53 a troy ounce and spot silver falling 3.8% to $72.22 a troy ounce. The dollar strengthened against most Asian currencies, rising 0.7% to 1,522.86 won and gaining 0.4% at 159.37 yen.

U.S. stock futures declined, with eMini S&P 500 futures down 1.2%, eMini Nasdaq 100 futures losing 1.5%, and eMini Dow futures 1.0% lower, as reported by Ronnie Harui and Sherry Qin for Dow Jones.