A pedestrian looks at an electronic quotation board showing numbers of the Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo on September 11, 2020.
Kazuhiro Nogi | AFP | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets were set to open broadly lower Wednesday as concerns grew that the Middle East conflict could drag on, after President Donald Trump extended a U.S. ceasefire in Iran.
“Based on the fact that the Government of Iran is seriously fractured, not unexpectedly so and, upon the request of Field Marshal Asim Munir, and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, of Pakistan, we have been asked to hold our Attack on the Country of Iran until such time as their leaders and representatives can come up with a unified proposal,” Trump said in a Truth Social post.
He added that the ceasefire would be extended until Tehran submitted a proposal or discussions were concluded, and that the U.S. military would continue its blockade of Iranian ports.
However, the timeline remains uncertain. Negotiators from Tehran said they wouldn’t attend the talks with the U.S., calling them a “waste of time,” Iranian state media reported on Wednesday.
The uncertainty also delayed Vice President JD Vance’s trip to join peace talks, according to reports from Axios and The New York Times, citing U.S. officials with knowledge of the situation.
West Texas Intermediate futures were 0.86% higher at $90.44 per barrel as of 7:13 p.m. ET. Brent crude last traded at $98.48 per barrel.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 was poised to trade lower, with the Chicago futures contract at 58,940 and its Osaka counterpart last trading at 58,850, compared with the index’s previous close of 59,349.17.
Hong Kong Hang Seng index futures were at 26,221, compared with the index’s last close of 26,487.48.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 futures last traded at 8,915, below the index’s last close of 8,949.40.
