Markets rise as hopes grow for US-Iran talks and easing oil prices

WASHINGTON: Share prices rose early on Wednesday, echoing a rally on Wall Street that eased after oil prices eased on hopes that the United States and Iran could resume talks.

European stocks were mostly steady on Wednesday as investors rallied on signs from Washington that a diplomatic breakthrough in the Iran war was imminent.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 fell 0.1 percent, Germany’s DAX rose 0.11 percent and the FTSE 100 climbed 0.11 percent. In France, the CAC 40 fell by a slightly larger margin, to 0.65 percent.

US President Donald Trump said that Washington and Tehran “could have fresh talks in the next couple of days” in Islamabad, hinting at a possible diplomatic breakthrough, adding that the war is “very close to being over” despite continued uncertainty over key points in the talks.

Asian markets were bullish.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.5 percent, South Korea’s Kospi gained 3.0 percent and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.7 percent.

The Shanghai Composite added 0.2 percent, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was little changed, down less than 0.1 percent.

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 added 1.2 percent to its previous day’s gains, and the index at the heart of many 401(k) accounts is now just 0.2 percent below its record set in January.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 317 points, or 0.7 percent, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 2 percent.

On Wednesday, benchmark U.S. crude rose 1 cent to $91.29 a barrel.

Brent crude rose 48 cents, or less than 1 percent, to $95.27 after falling 4.6 percent yesterday. While it is still above the level of about $70 from before the war began in late February, it is well below the peak of $119.

Low oil prices help to reduce business spending across the economy. However, some analysts noted that the war is still ongoing, warning that this optimism could prove unfounded.