Asian markets down, oil rises on fears of Iran

BEIJING (AP) – Asian stock markets were mostly down, as oil prices surged for the second day on Monday, following reports that Washington wants to block Iranian exports.

The Tokyo index rose slightly while Shanghai, Seoul and India fell. Hong Kong and Sydney were closed for the holidays.

On Wall Street, the Standard & Poor's 500 benchmark ended a week of trading shortened Thursday with a series of three weekly earnings.

Investors anticipated the US gross domestic product expected Friday. Also this week, the United States announced Tuesday new home sales, while Japan announced Friday the exit of its factory.

"We generally expect American indices to creak higher," said Jingyi Pan of IG Markets in a report.

"However, with prices close to the historical highs, some caution is required," said Pan. "The benefits and the first reading of US GDP in the first quarter at the end of the week would be essential for the markets."

The Tokyo Nikkei 225 index rose 12 points to 22,213.37 and the Seoul index rose 0.1% to 2,218.47. The Shanghai Composite Index fell 1.4% to 3,250.91.

Benchmarks in Taiwan and Singapore rose as Jakarta pulled out.

On Thursday, the S & P 500 index rose 0.2% to 2,905.03 before closing for Good Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.4% to 26,559.54. The Nasdaq composite added less than 0.1% to 7,998.06.

Oil prices have risen following reports that the Trump government will tell five countries, including Japan, South Korea and Turkey, that they will no longer be exempt from US sanctions if they import oil. d & # 39; Iran.

Washington wants to increase pressure on Tehran by cutting export revenue, US officials told The Associated Press.

If successful, it could stimulate demand for supplies from allies in the United States of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, but would increase political tensions.

"The big fear now and perhaps the next important market catalyst, will Iran retaliate with force?" Said Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management in a report.

The benchmark US crude jumped from $ 1.55 to $ 65.62 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose from $ 1.20 Friday to close at $ 64.07. Brent crude, used for the price of international oil, jumped from $ 1.79 to $ 73.76 a barrel in London. He won 35 cents the previous session at $ 71.97.

CURRENCY: The dollar gained 111.94 yen against 111.91 yen on Friday. The euro went from $ 1.1245 to $ 1.1239.

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