Asian markets are trading mostly lower on Thursday, despite the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight, as traders remain cautious following fresh attacks with the U.S. military shooting down four Iranian drones and striking a control center in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas to prevent a fifth drone launch. Asian markets closed mixed on Wednesday.
However, continued optimism about a potential peace deal between the US and Iran to end the Middle East war and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz saw crude oil prices tumble.
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Market Analysis
May 22, 2026 14:46 ET Minutes of the latest Fed policy session was the highlight of the week along with survey data on the U.S. housing market. In Europe, survey data signaled the trends in the euro area private sector. Further, consumer price inflation data from the U.K. was in focus. In Asia, various economic indicators from China drew attention to the health of the economy.