HONG KONG (AP) — Oil rose again to above $97 a barrel and Asian stocks were trading mostly lower Thursday on skepticism over a fragile ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran.
Investors were closely watching whether a two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran was already slipping after a round of intense Israeli strikes on Lebanon that killed and injured hundreds. Iran again closed the Strait of Hormuz, in response to the attacks in Lebanon.
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 dropped 0.7% to 55,895.32, while South Korea’s Kospi lost 1.6% to 5,778.01. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.4% to 25,793.49. The Shanghai Composite index was down 0.7% to 3,966.17. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 edged up 0.2% to 8,973.20. Taiwan’s Taiex was 0.3% higher, while India’s Sensex dropped 0.8%.
U.S. futures were down more than 0.2%.
Oil prices were up Thursday, reversing an earlier plunge on optimism over the temporary ceasefire agreement. Brent crude, the international standard, was up 2.4% to $97.03 per barrel. It previously fell briefly to below $92 a barrel following the temporary ceasefire announcement.
