On Monday (27 July, 9:17 AM, GMT+7, Bangkok time), most major indices in the Asia Pacific exhibited an upward trend, reacting to falling oil prices as tensions in the Middle East appeared to subside. Crude futures retreated after Iranian officials signaled a halt to military actions, contingent upon a pause by the United States.
This followed a 13-day series of U.S. strikes on Iran, which ceased late Friday without official comment from President Donald Trump’s administration. Iranian military authorities confirmed that they had also stopped operations.
The pause in U.S.-Iran hostilities eased concerns over further escalation, contributing to a more positive market environment at the start of a week filled with significant events. Investors now turn their attention to the upcoming Federal Reserve policy decision on Wednesday. The recent volatility in energy prices has heightened inflation worries, fueling debate over the timing and scale of future interest rate increases.
Expectations among market participants are split on whether the Fed will move rates higher this week or delay action until September, with futures markets assigning a probability to a near-term increase, as tracked by the CME FedWatch Tool.
Meanwhile, traders are bracing for a series of earnings reports from major U.S. technology firms, including Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, and Microsoft. These results come amid scrutiny over aggressive investments in artificial intelligence initiatives.
Japan’s NIKKEI rose by 0.16% to 64,714.30. Australia’s ASX 200 grew by 0.97% to 8,857.00, while South Korea’s KOSPI dropped by 1.18% to 6,611.95.
As for stocks in China, Shanghai’s SSEC increased by 0.56% to 3,835.67. Shenzhen’s SZI jumped 1.64% to 13,999.85, and Hong Kong’s HSI surged 0.42% to 25,067.57.
The U.S. stock markets were mixed on Friday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) gained 0.46% to 51,947.25. S&P 500 climbed by 0.05% to 7,411.98, while NASDAQ contracted by 0.64% to 24,975.82. VIX fell by 0.64% to 18.58.
As for commodities, oil prices settled higher on Friday as both the U.S. and Iran halted their recent military actions following two weeks of hostilities, increasing expectations for renewed diplomatic engagement. Brent futures lost $3.90, or 4.03%, to $92.88 per barrel, and the WTI futures plummeted $3.93, or 4.40%, to $85.38 per barrel.
Meanwhile, gold futures advanced by 0.87% to $4,106.40 per Troy ounce.
