Asian stocks fall, oil up as Trump threatens Iran

Toko — Asian stocks fell sharply in early trade Tuesday, with oil prices rising as the Middle East crisis escalated further after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to destroy Iran's main export terminal.

The South Korean Kospi index was down more than four percent around 0030 GMT and Japan's Nikkei index dropped 2.24 percent before both recovered slightly. The price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the main U.S. benchmark for oil, rose 3.30 percent to $106.28 a barrel after closing Monday above $100 for the first time since the war started.

Brent Crude, the international benchmark, climbed 2.23 percent to $109.78 early Tuesday. Trump threatened on Monday to destroy Iran's key oil export hub of Kharg Island along with power and desalination plants unless Tehran quickly accepted a deal even as he suggested diplomacy was making headway. Trump warned that if a deal were not struck — including to reopen the vital Strait of Hormuz shipping lane — U.S. forces would destroy all of their electric generating plants, oil wells, and Kharg Island (and possibly all desalination plants!) Destroying civilian infrastructure could constitute a war crime under international humanitarian law, experts say.

Edward Lance Arellano Lorilla

CEO / Co-Founder

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