Asia markets trade mixed as murky U.S.-Iran peace deal prospects keep investors on edge

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Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed Friday following a volatile session, as the prospect of a peace deal in the Middle East remained murky amid contradictory messaging from the U.S. and Iran.

President Donald Trump extended his Friday deadline to attack Iran’s energy infrastructure by 10 days to April 6 to allow more time for negotiations.

The extension was at the request of the government of the Islamic Republic, Trump said, and it was granted in exchange for 10 oil tankers that passed through the Strait of Hormuz as a “present” from Tehran.

“As per Iranian Government request, please let this statement serve to represent that I am pausing the period of Energy Plant destruction,” Trump said in a Truth Social post.

“Talks are ongoing and, despite erroneous statements to the contrary by the Fake News Media, and others, they are going very well,” Trump added.

Washington has in recent days signaled it wants a negotiated end to the conflict and insisted that peace talks with the Islamic Republic had been ongoing. Tehran has denied that it is in direct talks with the U.S.

Iran reportedly rejected the 15-point proposal compiled by the U.S. and offered their own conditions, including a guarantee that the U.S. and Israel won’t resume their attacks on the country and recognition of its authority over the Strait of Hormuz.

Oil prices fell amid easing tensions in the almost month-long conflict. The West Texas Intermediate for May delivery dropped 1.8% to $92.82 per barrel as of 8:30 p.m. ET, while international benchmark Brent crude oil futures fell 1.92% to $105.9 a barrel.

South Korea blue-chip Kospi pulled back 0.4% to end at 5,438.87, paring losses earlier in the session, while the small-cap Kosdaq rebounded to gain 0.4% and finish at 1,141.51.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.11% to 8,516.3. Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped 0.43% to 53,373.07, and the broad-based Topix added 0.19% to 3,649.69.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 0.38% to 24,951.88 while mainland China’s CSI 300 climbed 0.56% to 4,502.57.

China’s industrial profits jumped 15.2% from a year earlier in the January-February period, the National Bureau of Statistics data showed Friday, extending a sharp rebound from a 5.3% jump in December.

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The U.S. futures climbed as worries over soaring oil prices eased. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose by 175 points, or 0.4%. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures climbed almost 0.4%, each.

The major indexes ended lower, with the benchmark S&P 500 index down 1.7%, its biggest daily drop since the beginning of 2026. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 2.4%, ending in correction territory. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 1.01%.

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