Middle East war

April 24, 2026 10:02 AM

Asia shares mixed, oil advances on US-Iran deadlock

Asia shares struggled on Friday and oil prices resumed their rise, as a shaky ceasefire in the Middle East war and stalled U.S.-Iran peace talks gave investors little to cheer. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.3% and was set to end the week with a 0.8% gain, while Japan's Nikkei added 0.45% and stocks in South Korea , China and Hong Kong fell. Nasdaq futures NQc1 and S&P 500 futures advanced 0.6% and 0.1%, respectively, after closing lower in the cash ses...

April 2, 2026 3:25 PM

Hopes dim for swift end to Iran war after Trump speech, oil prices surge

Hopes for a swift end to the Middle East war faded on Thursday after U.S. President Donald Trump vowed more aggressive strikes on Iran, sending oil prices back well over $100 a barrel in a blow to consumers around the world. Stocks slid and the dollar gained after Trump said military operations would be intensified without offering the timeline that investors had sought for ending hostilities against Iran. "We're going to hit them extremely hard over the next two to three weeks. We're going to...

August 1, 2024 10:57 AM

UN Security Council countries express alarm over risk of all-out Middle East war

United Nations Security Council countries on Wednesday called for stepped-up diplomatic efforts to avert a wider Middle East conflict after the killings of two militant leaders raised tensions. Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in the Iranian capital Tehran early on Wednesday, sparking threats of revenge against Israel and fueling concern the Gaza conflict was turning into a wider Middle East war. The assassination occurred less than 24 hours after Hezbollah's most senior military c...