ASX updates: Shares rise after Donald Trump declares Iran ‘war is won’
The S&P/ASX 200 share index rose 1.25 per cent and benchmark crude oil prices eased to $US96 a barrel after the US reportedly sent Iran a 15-point peace plan.
Australian shares rose on Wednesday morning after President Donald Trump declared “the war has been won” and US newspaper reported the US sent Iran a 15-point peace plan via Pakistani negotiators.
The S&P/ASX 200 share index rose 1.3 per cent to 8489, leaving the market flat over the past week. Benchmark Brent crude prices eased to $US96 a barrel as traders scoured for clues as to the likelihood Iran will reopen the Strait of Hormuz as part of any peace deal. The Australian dollar fell 0.3 per cent to buy US69.9 cents.
Kuwait and Saudi Arabia reported drone and missile attacks on Tuesday, while mediators from Turkey, Egypt and Pakistan want to arrange a meeting between American and Iranian officials in the next 48 hours, the Wall Street Journal reported.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.President Trump said overnight that Washington and Tehran are in “negotiations right now” and suggested Iran may be seeking a deal following significant military losses.
“And the other side, I can tell you they’d like to make a deal, and who wouldn’t?” he said. “If you were there, look, their navy’s gone, their air force is gone, their communications are done, that’s the biggest problem.”
The editor-in-chief of Iran’s Tasnim News Agency denied Iran wanted to negotiate and accused the US of creating a “rumour” of negotiations because its attacks were unsuccessful.
“When the Americans saw they had reached a dead end on the military field, they said, ‘Let’s strike Iran’s political infrastructure instead of its economic and military infrastructure.’” he said.
Westpac’s economics team said: “News headlines on the Middle East remain mixed with Iran and Israel showing no sign of a letup, and while the US administration continues to talk about formal discussions with Iran.
“The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this morning that the US is planning to deploy a team from the elite 82nd Airborne Division to the Middle East.”
US bond yields traded sideways after a month-long rally sparked by concerns that the Middle East war is set to create an inflation surge.
Mega-cap tech stocks fell on Wall Street including Google-owner Alphabet, down nearly 4 per cent on concerns ChatGPT-maker OpenAI is beating it in the AI race. While homegrown software giant Atlassian plunged 8.4 per cent to $US68.14 on a report Amazon is developing new AI tools.
Australian inflation data for February is due later this morning and may provide an indication of future interest rate changes.
