Asian stock markets are trading mostly lower on Tuesday, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight, as traders remain concerned about the escalating conflict in the Middle East. They also used the initial sell-off as an opportunity to pick up stocks at reduced levels. The conflict has led to a spike in crude oil prices that has renewed concerns about inflation and the US Fed leaving interest rates higher for longer. Asian markets closed mostly lower on Monday.
The sharp increase by the price of crude oil comes after the U.S. and Israel launched joint strikes against Iran over the weekend, killing Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
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Market Analysis
June 19, 2026 16:46 ET Major central banks continued to dominate the economic news flow this week too, led by the Federal Reserve, as they announced their latest policy decisions. The Federal Reserve policy session was in focus as it was the first to be led by the new chief Kevin Warsh. In Europe, central banks of the U.K. and Switzerland announced their rate decisions. In Asia, the Bank of Japan drew attention for its policy moves, while data out of China threw some light on the state of the economy.