Emerging Markets: Asia markets snap back as Trump calms Middle East jitters

Singapore Exchange

10/03/2026 07:58

Updates for afternoon trade

South Korea shares jump; policy support eyed on oil shock

Ringgit leads regional FX on Malaysia oil exporter status

Hormuz risks keep Asia volatile despite rebound - analyst

By Roushni Nair

March 10 (Reuters) -
Asian markets rebounded on Tuesday, led by South Korean stocks and the Malaysian ringgit, after U.S. President
Donald Trump
 said that the Middle East war could be "over soon", calming frayed nerves a day after a surge in oil prices sparked a sharp selloff.

The MSCI emerging markets stocks index .MSCIEF jumped 3.1% after two days of losses, while the EM currency index .MIEM00000CUS climbed 0.8%, also ending a two-day slide. Both were on track for their strongest session since early February after the currency index tumbled 3% on Monday.

Sentiment improved after Trump said overnight that the Iran conflict could be resolved "very soon" and that the United States was "far ahead" of a four- to five-week timeline, although he cautioned it would not end this week.

He also floated waiving oil‑related sanctions and deploying the U.S. Navy to escort tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint for a quarter of global oil, where any disruption would hit Asia's import‑reliant economies hardest.

Oil prices fell on Tuesday after hitting a more than three-year high in the previous session. O/R

In South Korea, the benchmark KOSPI .KS11 climbed as much as 6.5%, rebounding sharply from Monday's 5.96% plunge, after a sidecar curb was triggered early in the session when futures jumped more than 5%.

The rally was also supported by Seoul's indication that it may draft an extra budget to support low-income households hit by rising oil prices. South Korean markets have triggered market circuit breakers twice since the Middle East conflict began.

The Malaysian ringgit MYR= stood out among regional currencies, strengthening 1% and snapping a three-day losing streak, while stocks in Kuala Lumpur .KLSE gained 1.5% and were on course for their best session since mid-May.

India's NSE Nifty index .NSEI rose 0.8% after losing 1.7% on Monday, while the rupee INR=IN strengthened 0.3%.

The Thai baht THB= slipped 0.2% to 31.70 per dollar, though Bangkok shares .SETI added nearly 2%. Thailand is also seeking additional energy sources to secure fuel supplies.

Shares in Taiwan .TWII and Singapore .STI gained more than 2% each, while Jakarta stocks .JKSE added 1.2%. The Singapore dollar SGD= was little changed, while Indonesia's rupiah IDR= strengthened 0.4%.

Singapore Exchange SGXL.SI plans to launch Asian government bond futures in the coming weeks as investors increasingly turn to hedging tools.

In the Philippines, the peso PHP= reversed early gains to trade down 0.2%. Manila stocks .PSI, which plunged more than 5% in the previous session, rebounded 2% and were on track for their best day since early January.

"Rebounds of this nature are going to happen, but that doesn't mean the risk is past us. Markets are going to remain volatile and reactive to every development in the Middle East over the coming days and weeks, and the situation on the ground is still serious," said Josh Gilbert, market analyst at eToro.

HIGHLIGHTS:

** Malaysia's January industrial production expands 5.9%

** Japan upgrades Q4 GDP on robust capex

Asia stock indexes and currencies at 0707 GMT
COUNTRY
FX RIC
FX DAILY %
FX YTD %
INDEX
STOCKS DAILY %
STOCKS YTD %
Japan
JPY=
+0.07
-0.56
.N225
2.88
4.66
China
CNY=CFXS
+0.41
+1.57
.SSEC
0.65
3.89
India
INR=IN
+0.48
-2.20
.NSEI
0.55
-7.54
Indonesia
IDR=
+0.42
-1.16
.JKSE
1.08
-14.23
Malaysia
MYR=
+0.94
+3.39
.KLSE
1.45
1.09
Philippines
PHP=
-0.13
-0.56
.PSI
2.01
1.22
S.Korea
KRW=KFTC
+0.31
-2.02
.KS11
5.35
31.29
Singapore
SGD=
+0.17
+1.04
.STI
1.88
4.30
Taiwan
TWD=TP
+0.25
-1.27
.TWII
2.06
13.15
Thailand
THB=TH
-0.14
-0.71
.SETI
1.82
11.79

 (Reporting by Roushni Nair and Sherin Sunny in Bengaluru; Editing by Saad Sayeed and Eileen Soreng)

 ((Roushni.nair@thomsonreuters.com))