SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA – MARCH 05: A currency dealer works in front of an electronic screen showing South Korea’s benchmark stock index (KOSPI) in a foreign exchange dealing room at the Hana Bank headquarters on March 05, 2026 in Seoul, South Korea. The latest flare-up in the Iran conflict has hammered export\u2011reliant markets in South Korea and Japan, knocking benchmark indexes sharply lower on fears that surging energy costs and a prolonged hit to risk appetite could undercut corporate earnings and growth across Asia’s trade\u2011driven economies. (Photo by Han Myung-Gu\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
Han Myung-gu | Getty Images News | Getty Images<\/p>\n
Asia-Pacific markets opened higher Wednesday, with comments from U.S. President Donald Trump pointing to potential talks with Iran lifting sentiment, even as Tehran has denied any direct negotiations with Washington.<\/p>\n
Speaking at the Oval Office on Tuesday, Trump said the U.S. and Iran were “in negotiations right now” and suggested Tehran was keen to strike a peace deal, adding he had stepped back from threats to target<\/a> Iranian energy infrastructure “based on the fact we’re negotiating.”<\/p>\n Australia’s\u00a0S&P\/ASX 200<\/a> rose over 1.4% in early trade.<\/p>\n Japan’s Nikkei 225<\/a> gained 2.5%, while the Topix added 2.4%. South Korea’s Kospi jumped 2.5%, while the small-cap Kosdaq was 1.6% higher.<\/p>\n Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index<\/a> futures were at 24,972 compared with the index’s last close of 25,063.71.<\/p>\n Oil prices were lower in early Asia trading hours. West Texas Intermediate crude futures<\/a> were down 3.92% at $88.73 per barrel.<\/p>\n U.S. stock futures rose Tuesday night stateside, with S&P 500 futures<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Nasdaq 100 futures<\/a>\u00a0rising 0.7% and 0.8%, respectively.\u00a0Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average<\/a>\u00a0gained 318 points, or 0.7%.<\/p>\n Futures were higher after the\u00a0S&P 500<\/a>\u00a0pulled back, giving back some of the sharp gains seen in the previous session, as crude prices rose again while the Iran war moved further into its fourth week.<\/p>\n The broad market index lost 0.37% and ended at 6,556.37, while the\u00a0Dow Jones Industrial Average<\/a>\u00a0shed 84.41 points, or 0.18%, and settled at 46,124.06. The\u00a0Nasdaq Composite<\/a>\u00a0dropped 0.84% and closed at 21,761.89.<\/p>\n \u2014CNBC’s Sean Conlon and Lisa Kailai Han contributed to this report.<\/p>\n