Singapore, Asia stocks surge after Trump signals Iran war to end in two to three weeks

[SINGAPORE] Asia markets rose on Wednesday (Apr 1) after US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that the US could end its military campaign against Iran within two to three weeks.

The Straits Times Index (STI) rose almost 2 per cent shortly after market open at 9.13 am.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up 3.8 per cent, while the broader Topix increased 3.5 per cent. South Korea’s Kospi was 6.1 per cent higher, as at 9.28 am.

In Singapore, the most actively traded counter by volume was CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust , which was trading at S$2.34, up S$0.05 or 2.2 per cent after nearly 11.9 million units changed hands.

Banking stocks led advances, with DBS trading at S$57.79, S$0.89 or 1.6 per cent higher. UOB rose to S$37.14, S$0.49 or 1.3 per cent higher, and OCBC was at S$22.46, S$0.49 or 2.23 per cent up.

Trump declared on Tuesday that he could soon end the month-long war in the Middle East, which has left the global energy market in convulsion, with especially harsh effects on Asia businesses and economies.

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He said the war should end in two to three weeks, fuelling the Dow Jones Index’s 1,125.37 points, or 2.46 per cent rally to close at 46,341.51 in overnight trading in New York. The S&P 500 also gained 2.91 per cent, and Nasdaq advanced 3.83 per cent.