Japanese and South Korean stocks rose on Friday after a late rally on Wall Street as traders said they thought Iran war tensions may be nearing a controlled outcome.
Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average rose 1.4% following a reversal in the S&P 500 index, while South Korea’s Kospi rose 2.7%, erasing a 1.5% intraday loss to end 0.1% higher. The change in sentiment comes as oil prices have fallen from recent highs following reports that Iran is working on a protocol with Oman to monitor shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which has been effectively closed since the conflict erupted.
The improvement in currency markets was reflected in the US dollar weakening against major peers as demand for safe-haven assets subsided. Asian government bond futures remained mostly flat, and the U.S. spot market is expected to reopen later for shortened trading.
Several markets in the Asia-Pacific region remained closed for Good Friday, including Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore, the Philippines and Indonesia. U.S. stocks will also be closed, but important economic announcements are still scheduled, including the March non-farm payrolls report.
Risk sentiment weakened early in the week, with US President Donald Trump’s comments doing little to ease concerns about a short-term resolution to the conflict. Trump had previously outlined a two- to three-week timeline, but signaled military operations would continue and warned of “very aggressive” action.
Subsequent attacks on Iranian infrastructure, including a 100-year-old medical research center in Tehran, steel facilities and bridges near the capital, have drawn criticism. Iranian officials and several analysts say these targets fall under civilian infrastructure, raising concerns about further escalation and humanitarian consequences.
Oil markets reacted sharply to the heightened rhetoric. Prices soared above $110 a barrel on Thursday, with West Texas Intermediate rising about 12% to $112 and Brent settling around $109. Europe’s diesel standard exceeded $200 per barrel for the first time since 2022, highlighting supply concerns due to disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.
Despite the volatility in energy markets, traditional safe-haven assets such as gold had limited movement on Friday, indicating a cautious wait-and-see attitude among investors as the geopolitical situation remains fluid.
Cryptocurrency stocks have had mixed performance as wars in the Middle East intensify. At the end of Thursday, Coinbase stock was down 0.9%, while Robinhood was down 1.73%. Galaxy Digital bucked this trend, gaining 1.5% by the close.
Cryptocurrency mining stocks rose significantly. In particular, Marathon Digital rose 8.3%, while Riot Platforms, Hut8 Mining, and BitFarms rose 2.47%, 1.5%, and over 1%, respectively.
However, accumulation-oriented companies did not follow the same trend. Michael Saylor’s Bitcoin-focused financial firm Strategy fell 2.4%, while Bitmine Immersion Technologies (BNMR) fell 1.2%.
This divergence suggests that investors favored mining companies that tend to track Bitcoin price movements more closely amid continued geopolitical uncertainty.
