South Korea stocks lead gains in Asia as oil prices plunge after U.S.-Iran ceasefire deal

In this articleAsia-Pacific markets rallied on Wednesday after U.S.

President Donald Trump said he had agreed to suspend planned attacks on Iranian infrastructure for two weeks.The move was "subject to the Islamic Republic of Iran agreeing to the COMPLETE, IMMEDIATE, and SAFE OPENING of the Strait of Hormuz," he wrote on Truth Social.Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in a post on X on behalf of the country's Supreme National Security Council said Tehran's armed forces will "cease their defensive operations."Trump noted the 2-week ceasefire was subject to Iran agreeing to a complete, immediate and safe opening of the Strait of Hormuz. Araghchi said that safe passage via Hormuz Strait will be possible via coordination with Iran's armed forces for the next two weeks.U.S. crude oil prices plunged on the news.

The West Texas Intermediate contract for May delivery trimmed some losses, but was still down 14% at $96.86 per barrel as of 9:36 p.m. ET.Asia markets rallied with South Korea's Kospi surging 5.8%, while the small-cap Kosdaq was up 4.1%. Index heavyweights Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix jumped 7.12% and 9.61%, respectively. Japan's Nikkei 225 widened gains to 4.95%, while the Topix rose 3.1%.China's CSI 300 gained 1.95%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index advanced 2.56% as trading resumed following holiday. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 2.7%. "For longer, energy prices were destined to be fairly inflationary around the world. And if there's now a bit of a belief or some visibility that energy prices can come back down, that's better for inflation, better for the outlook of central bank cuts and so on," said Josh Rubin, portfolio manager at Thornburg Investments.Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 718 points, or 1.5%. S&P 500 futures added 1.6%, and Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 1.7%.Overnight in the U.S., the S&P 500 inched up 0.08% and closed at 6,616.85, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.10% to settle at 22,017.85.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 85.42 points, or 0.18%, closing at 46,584.46.—CNBC's Sean Conlon and Lisa Kailai Han contributed to this report.Got a confidential news tip? We want to hear from you.Sign up for free newsletters and get more CNBC delivered to your inboxGet this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services.© 2026 Versant Media, LLC.

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