Asian Markets Trade Mixed

(RTTNews) - Asian stock markets are trading mixed on Tuesday, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street on Monday, as fading hopes for US-Iran peace negotiations dampened market sentiment after US President Donald Trump rejected Iran's counteroffer to end the war as "unacceptable", adding the month-old ceasefire with Iran is "unbelievably weak" and on "massive life support." Asian markets closed mixed on Monday.

Trump called Iran's response to his peace proposal a "piece of garbage" and said he "didn't even finish reading it."

With the ongoing conflict in the eleventh week and the Strait of Hormuz remaining closed, crude oil prices have soared and reinforced global inflationary pressures. Trump is considering renewed plans to escort commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz.

The Australian stock market is modestly lower on Tuesday after opening in the green, extending the losses in the previous two sessions, despite the broadly positive cues from Wall Street on Monday. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index is falling well below the 8,700.00 level, with weakness in financial and technology stocks partially offset by gains in mining and energy stocks.

Traders also remained cautious ahead of the release of Australia's 2026 federal budget later in the day.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 34.80 points or 0.40 percent to 8,667.00, after touching a high of 8,713.40 and a low of 8,619.10 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 38.80 points or 0.43 percent to 8,903.60. Australian stocks closed notably lower on Monday.

Among the major miners, Rio Tinto is gaining almost 3 percent, BHP Group is advancing more than 3 percent, Fortescue is adding almost 1 percent and Mineral Resources is up more than 1 percent.

Oil stocks are mostly higher. Beach energy, Santos and Woodside Energy are gaining almost 1 percent each. Origin Energy is flat.

Among tech stocks, Afterpay owner Block is losing more than 2 percent, Appen is slipping almost 2 percent and Zip is declining almost 3 percent, while Xero and WiseTech Global are tumbling more than 5 percent each.

Gold miners are mostly higher. Northern Star Resources is gaining almost 4 percent, Newmont is surging almost 5 percent, Resolute Mining is jumping more than 5 percent, Genesis Minerals rising more than 6 percent and Evolution Mining is advancing almost 4 percent.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank and Westpac are losing more than 1 percent each, while ANZ Banking and National Australia Bank are declining almost 2 percent each. In economic news, Australia's NAB Business Confidence Index rose to -24 in April 2026 from -29 in the previous month, which had marked the second-largest monthly drop on record amid surging energy costs tied to the Middle East conflict. Meanwhile, business conditions slid to 3 from 6, the second-lowest since 2020 and the fourth straight decline.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.723 on Tuesday.

The Japanese stock market is trading notably higher on Tuesday, reversing some of the losses in the previous two sessions, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street on Monday, with the Nikkei 225 moving above the 62,800 level, with gains in exporters, financial and technology stocks.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 62,805.44, up 387.56 points or 0.62 percent, after touching a high of 63,218.51 earlier. Japanese shares ended notably lower on Monday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is gaining more than 3 percent, while Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is losing more than 3 percent. Among automakers, Honda is edging up 0.2 percent, while Toyota is losing almost 1 percent.

In the tech space, Advantest is gaining almost 1 percent, Screen Holdings is adding more than 1 percent and Tokyo Electron is edging up 0.3 percent.

In the banking sector, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is advancing more than 1 percent and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is edging up 0.2 percent, while Mizuho Financial is edging down 0.1 percent.

The major exporters are mostly higher. Mitsubishi Electric and Canon are edging up 0.2 to 0.5 percent each, while Sony is gaining more than 2 percent and Panasonic is advancing more than 3 percent.

Among the other major gainers, Ibiden is soaring almost 12 percent, Sumitomo Electric Industries is surging almost 11 percent, Renesas Electronics is jumping more than 9 percent, Fujikura is advancing almost 9 percent, Teijin is rising more than 8 percent and Orix is gaining almost 8 percent, while Sumitomo Metal Mining and Nikon are adding almost 7 percent each. MS&AD Insurance Group is surging more than 6 percent, while Furukawa Electric and Yaskawa Electric are jumping almost 6 percent each. Murata Manufacturing is gaining more than 5 percent, while ENEOS Holdings, Toppan Holdings and Tokai Carbon are adding almost 5 percent each.

Conversely, Yamaha is tumbling almost 9 percent, LY is sliding more than 6 percent and Ryohin Keikaku is declining almost 5 percent, while BayCurrent, Keyence and Kobe Steel are losing almost 3 percent each.

In economic news, household spending in Japan fell 2.9 percent on year in March 2026, deepening from a 1.8 percent drop in the prior month and missing market estimates of a 1.3 percent decline. This marked the fourth straight decrease in personal consumption. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, spending was down 1.3 percent, reversing a 1.5 percent growth in February and underperforming forecasts of a 0.6 percent rise.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the higher 157 yen-range on Tuesday.

Elsewhere in Asia, New Zealand, South Korea and Indonesia are lower by between 1.2 and 1.6 percent each, while China is down 0.1 percent. Hong Kong, Malaysia and Taiwan are higher by between 0.1 and 0.4 percent each. Singapore is relatively flat.

On Wall Street, stocks showed a lack of direction over the course of the trading session on Monday after turning in a strong performance last week. The major averages spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line before eventually closing modestly higher.

The Dow rose 95.31 points or 0.2 percent to 49,704.47, the Nasdaq inched up 27.05 points or 0.1 percent to 26,274.13 and the S&P 500 edged up 13.91 points or 0.2 percent to 7,412.84.

Meanwhile, the major European markets ended the day mixed. While the French CAC 40 Index slid by 0.7 percent, the German DAX Index crept up by 0.1 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index rose by 0.4 percent.

Crude oil prices surged after President Donald Trump rejected Iran's response to a U.S. proposal to end the months-long war, calling it "totally unacceptable" in a post on Truth Social. West Texas Intermediate crude for June delivery was up $3.33 or 3.49 percent at $98.75 per barrel.