Countries are tapping into oil inventories and strategic reserves at a "record pace" due to the "unprecedented" supply disruptions caused by the Middle East war, the International Energy Agency said Wednesday.

Buyers in Indonesia, the world's second-largest wheat importer, last week signed deals to purchase at least 150,000 tonnes of new-crop Black Sea wheat for July shipment, while Thai millers booked 125,000 tonnes of US wheat, two Singapore-based traders said.

The benchmark index dropped 1.98 percent to 6,723.32 when the market closed on Wednesday. It has declined by more than 20 percent since the beginning of the year.  

Oil prices climbed on Tuesday as US-Iran talks stalled, while markets were mixed as traders appeared to shrug off uncertainty over the 10-week-old war.

Japan and the US reaffirmed their close cooperation in dealing with exchange rate moves, including on currency intervention, Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama told reporters after a meeting in Tokyo with her US counterpart, Scott Bessent, on Tuesday.

The dollar climbed in Asia on Monday on signs that talks between the United States and Iran were deadlocked, leaving the vital Strait of Hormuz all but shut and sending oil prices higher.

Oil prices rose and stocks slipped as the US and Iran exchanged fire in the Middle East, though many markets in Asia were still heading for stellar weekly gains as AI demand swept up chipmakers.

Asian stocks soared to record highs on Thursday while the US dollar slipped and oil nursed steep losses as traders embraced the prospect of a peace deal in the Middle East, although the fate of the critical Strait of Hormuz remains unresolved.

Oil prices extended losses and stocks rallied Wednesday on fresh hopes for an end to the Iran war and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, while Samsung blasted past the $1 trillion valuation mark as the AI tech boom continued apace.

Shares edged higher while oil prices flatlined in Asia on Monday as investors drew comfort from signs of patchy progress in settling the Middle East conflict at the start of a week packed with earnings and key economic data.

Saudi Arabia, Russia and five other OPEC+ countries increased their oil production quota on Sunday in an expected move aimed at demonstrating continuity at the cartel after the shock withdrawal of the United Arab Emirates.

Brent oil futures soared another 7.6 percent to US$119.69, the highest price since the early days of the Ukraine war in 2022.

Euro zone bond yields hit multi-week highs on Tuesday after a survey showed euro zone consumers expecting higher inflation, prompting markets to raise the likelihood of a hike in interest rates by the European Central Bank in the coming months.

The index has fallen 18.21 percent from its position at the start of the year, when the market closed on Tuesday, marking the steepest decline among Asian bourses.  

Oil prices edged up and stocks wavered Tuesday as Donald Trump weighed an Iranian proposal that would reportedly re-open the Strait of Hormuz and end the eight-week-old war.

Oil climbed on Monday as stalled US-Iran peace talks prolonged the disruption of Middle East energy exports, while renewed excitement about artificial intelligence spending drove up chip stocks at the beginning of a week where war, central banks and tech earnings are in focus.

The deal was forged during President Prabowo Subianto’s three-hour meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on April 13.

While airfreight volumes are expected to grow at a high single‑digit rate in the quarter, sea freight volumes are forecast to rise only at a low single‑digit pace year on year.

Iran on Wednesday captured two container ships seeking to exit the Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz, tightening its grip on the crucial waterway, as investors watch if the fragile ceasefire in the Middle East will hold.

India, the world's biggest urea importer, issued the tender earlier this month to secure 2.5 million tons of the fertilizer, or nearly a quarter of its annual imports of about 10 million tons in 2025.

Australia's Lynas facility in Gebeng, Malaysia is now the world's largest single rare earths processing plant.

With the two-week truce in its final hours, the US president said he would push the deadline back indefinitely following a request from mediator Pakistan and stressing the need to give Tehran's "fractured" leadership time to form a proposal.

Investors remained largely upbeat that the US and Iran will eventually come to a deal that will reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

The ceasefire in the Iran war, due to run until Tuesday, was in doubt after the US seized an Iranian cargo ship and Tehran's top military command vowed to retaliate.

The strategic Strait of Hormuz was again closed on Sunday in the stand-off between Iran and the United States, with Iran's powerful parliament speaker signaling a final peace deal remained "far" off despite some movement in negotiations.

The US-sanctioned tanker Rich Starry made its way back to the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday after exiting the Gulf the day before, shipping data showed, failing to break through a US blockade on vessels calling at Iranian ports.

Stocks rose and oil fell Tuesday on hopes for a deal to end the Middle East war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, with Donald Trump saying Tehran had called to seek an agreement even as a US naval blockade around Iran's ports began.

Oil prices surged and stocks sank Monday after US-Iran peace talks fell apart and Donald Trump announced a blockade of the strategic Strait of Hormuz, adding to fears for energy supplies from the Middle East.

The US oil benchmark rebounded above $100 a barrel on Monday after peace talks between the United States and Iran failed to make a breakthrough, and with US President Donald Trump ordering a blockade of Iranian ports.

Oil prices jumped and most stock markets fell Thursday on investor concerns over the Middle East ceasefire holding and as the key Strait of Hormuz remained largely blocked to traffic.