BANGKOK (AP) — Shares were mixed in Asia, while oil prices were holding steady Tuesday after jumping the day before as uncertainty persisted over when the Strait of Hormuz could reopen and get the global flow of crude going again.U.S. futures edged higher. Brent crude oil was unchanged at $87.72 a barrel, while U.S. benchmark crude also was flat at $82.13 a barrel. Brent surged 5% on Monday. It swung between $72 and $102 last month as hopes rose and fell that the United States and Iran could reach an agreement that would allow oil tankers to freely exit the Middle East again to deliver crude worldwide.Stocks wavered in Asia after the U.S. market edged away from its all-time highs.South Korea’s Kospi gained 1.5% to 6,391.71 as shares in market heavyweight Samsung Electronics jumped 4.6%. Memory chipmaker SK Hynix advanced 1.3%.Markets in Tokyo were closed for a holiday.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng lost 0.6% to 25,773.56, while the Shanghai Composite index edged 0.1% lower, to 3,964.79.Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.5% to 9,277.00 after the Reserve Bank of Australia opted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 4.35%. Taiwan’s Taiex rose 0.4% and the Sensex in India lost 0.4%.
