Asian Stocks Mixed, Oil Prices Fall as Risk-Off Sentiment Eases

By Kimberley Kao

Asian markets were mixed while oil prices fell Monday as markets weighed a selloff in U.S. tech stocks and diplomatic efforts in the Middle East.

U.S. stocks fell Friday as following more disappointing earnings reports from Amazon and Intel, as cracks in the artificial-intelligence trade widened through the week.

Risk-off sentiment in stocks eased in Asia on Monday. South Korea's Kospi was 1.35% higher, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.8% and China's Shanghai Composite Index was up 0.2%. Japan's Nikkei Stock Average fell 0.2%.

Futures tied to the U.S. indexes were higher, with tech-heavy Nasdaq futures up 0.8%.

Meanwhile, oil prices fell as recent diplomatic efforts raised hopes about reviving peace negotiations between Washington and Tehran. U.S. Vice President JD Vance sent a message to Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, in an effort to restart peace talks, The Wall Street Journal reported last week.

Front-month West Texas Intermediate crude-oil futures fell 2.0% to $102.05 a barrel, while front-month Brent declined 1.8% to $111.43 a barrel.

The U.S. midterm elections on Tuesday represent the next major geopolitical catalyst, as President Trump has repeatedly threatened to restart strikes on Iran after the elections, ANZ Research said in a note.

"For markets, the distribution of oil risks remains asymmetric--diplomacy could compress some geopolitical premium, but renewed military escalation or further disruption around the Strait of Hormuz could generate a sharper upside move," said Lloyd Chan, senior currency analyst at MUFG, in a note.

Spot gold was 0.9% higher at $3,911.81 a troy ounce, recovering some ground after falling below the key $4,000 level.

Asian currencies are likely to remain cautious ahead of this week's U.S. labor-market data, while the combination of higher U.S. yields and expensive oil remain an unfavorable backdrop for regional currencies, Chan said.

The U.S. dollar was last 0.1% higher at 157.74 yen, and was up 0.4% at 1,338.50 won.

Write to Kimberley Kao at kimberley.kao@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 01, 2026 21:08 ET (02:08 GMT)