On Monday morning (5 January, 9:28 AM, GMT+7, Bangkok time), major indices in the Asia Pacific increased across the board following news that the United States had conducted a military operation in Venezuela, resulting in the capture of President Nicolas Maduro.
U.S. officials reported that Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were brought to New York and charged with narco-terrorism conspiracy and other offenses, with an indictment alleging that drug trafficking has benefited Venezuela’s political and military leaders.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, Venezuela, a founding OPEC member, possesses the world’s largest proven crude oil reserves, totaling 303 billion barrels—approximately 17% of the global supply.
Japan’s NIKKEI jumped by 2.72% to 51,710.94. South Korea’s KOSPI soared by 2.49% to 4,416.86, and Australia’s ASX 200 climbed by 0.10% to 8,736.90.
As for stocks in China, Shanghai’s SSEC rose by 0.70% to 3,996.55. Shenzhen’s SZI surged by 1.16% to 13,682.25, and Hong Kong’s HSI grew by 0.30% to 26,416.29.
The U.S. stock markets were mixed on Friday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) advanced by 0.66% to 48,382.39. S&P 500 gained 0.19% to 6,858.47, while NASDAQ slid by 0.03% to 23,235.62. VIX plummeted by 2.94% to 14.51.
As for commodities, oil prices settled lower on Friday as market participants balanced concerns over excessive supply against heightened geopolitical tensions, such as the conflict in Ukraine and ongoing Venezuelan crude shipments. Brent crude futures ended the session 10 cents lower at $60.75 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate slipped by the same margin to settle at $57.32.
On Monday, oil benchmarks edged higher as investors assessed the impact of political turmoil in Venezuela. Brent crude increased by 17 cents to $60.92 per barrel as of 0024 GMT, while the WTI gained 11 cents to reach $57.43 per barrel.
Meanwhile, gold futures added 1.75% to $4,405.30 per Troy ounce.
