Andrew Caballero-Reynolds | AFP | Getty Images
Investors also assessed the durability of a U.S.-brokered peace agreement with Iran after U.S. Vice President JD Vance said any economic relief for Tehran would depend on the country meeting its obligations under the deal.
“The United States isn’t giving up a cent of money to Iran,” Vance said. “The only way the Iranians get any of these resources … is if they comply fully” with the terms of the deal.
Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, likewise described the agreement as conditional, saying on Thursday that he approved the memorandum only after receiving guarantees that Iran’s rights and the “resistance front” would be safeguarded.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 opened higher, advancing 0.6% after hitting a record high on Thursday, while the Topix was flat.
South Korea’s Kospi jumped 2.8% after crossing the 9,000 mark for the first time yesterday, while the small-cap Kosdaq slid 0.39%.
Australia’s benchmark S&P/ASX 200 was down 0.74%.
China, Hong Kong and Taiwan markets are closed for a holiday.
Overnight in the U.S., stocks closed out the holiday-shortened week in positive territory. The three major indexes closed higher after the Federal Reserve indicated the possibility of a rate hike this year — a move that sparked a sell-off in equities during the previous session.
The S&P 500 added 1.08%, closing at 7,500.58, and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.91% to 26,517.93. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 72.15 points, or 0.14%, to end at 51,564.70.
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