Asian markets decline as oil prices rise on geopolitical risks

Asian stock markets experienced declines on Wednesday as investor confidence showed signs of fatigue. Major indices saw widespread losses, including a 1.98% drop in South Korea’s Kospi, a 0.76% decline in Japan’s Nikkei, and losses in Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and Singapore’s markets. Despite these dips, the MSCI Asia-Pacific ex-Japan index remained up approximately 0.9% since the start of the month.

In the energy sector, oil prices rose due to dual supply concerns. WTI crude increased by 0.9% to $90.22 per barrel, while Brent crude rose by 1% to $101.58 per barrel. These gains were driven by the threat of a storm in the Gulf of Mexico affecting North American production, alongside escalating tensions between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis in the Middle East.