Bangkok — Stocks opened sharply higher in Asia on Thursday following a rebound on Wall Street, with South Korea’s Kospi regaining the 12% it lost the day before.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index jumped 4.3% to 56,600.44 points. The KOSPI was at 5,702.02 and trading was suspended after the index rose shortly after the open.
Australia S&The P/ASX 200 rose 0.3% to 8,927.20, while the New Zealand index rose 0.9%.
However, US futures were little changed, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average contract remaining roughly flat while the S&The P 500 index rose 0.2%.
US stocks rebounded after oil prices stopped rising and reports gave encouraging updates on the US economy.
S&The P 500 rose 0.8% on Wednesday and erased much of its losses since the start of the war with Iran. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.5%, and the Nasdaq Composite Index rose 1.3%.
Uncertainty over the war in the Middle East has rocked financial markets this week, much of it dependent on what oil prices do.
Oil prices were stable throughout the day on Wednesday.
After the price of a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, briefly exceeded $84, it settled at $81.40, back to where it was the day before. The price of a barrel of standard US crude rose 0.1 percent to $74.66.
However, oil resumed its climb early Thursday, rising 2.4% to $83.32 per barrel. Standard US crude jumped 2.5% to $76.53 a barrel.