Asian shares fell on Thursday as geopolitical tensions in the Middle East weighed on investor sentiment.
The pullback followed warnings from former U.S. President Donald Trump, who signalled the potential for direct U.S. involvement in the Israel-Iran conflict. Iran’s supreme leader, meanwhile, firmly rejected U.S. calls for surrender, further escalating uncertainty.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 dropped 0.9% to 38,554.98, though shares in Nippon Steel surged 3% after confirming the long-delayed completion of its acquisition of US Steel, despite earlier U.S. opposition.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 1.8% to 23,294.85, dragged lower by heavy losses in tech stocks. Mainland China’s Shanghai Composite slipped 0.6% to 3,368.16.
Elsewhere in the region:
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Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was little changed at 8,529.60
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South Korea’s Kospi edged down 0.1% to 2,969.75
U.S. markets will be closed on Thursday in observance of Juneteenth.
On Wednesday, Wall Street ended mixed after the Federal Reserve signalled it may cut interest rates twice before year-end, though it stressed that such a move remains data-dependent.
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S&P 500: flat at 5,980.87
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Dow Jones: down 0.1% to 42,171.66
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Nasdaq: up 0.1% to 19,546.27
In fixed income, the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield edged lower to 4.396%, from 4.405% the previous day, reflecting modest demand for safe-haven assets.
