Good morning and welcome to Markets Desk, your midday read on what's moving markets.
Asian equities are pushing higher despite a rough session on Wall Street overnight, with Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX two hundred holding comfortably above the eight thousand seven hundred level. The resilience is notable given the headwinds, and suggests regional investors are looking past short-term noise toward the broader rate cycle.
That rate cycle, of course, centers on the Federal Reserve, which delivered its first interest rate hike in more than three years. Indian markets are opening little changed as traders weigh that hawkish move against softer oil prices, a tug of war that reflects the broader tension between tighter monetary conditions and easing commodity cost pressures across emerging markets.
On the geopolitical front, President Trump is reportedly planning meetings with Gulf leaders at the United Nations next week, focused on Iran and the endgame of the ongoing conflict. With ceasefire talks stalled and Gulf states absorbing continued attacks from Iran-aligned Houthi militants, the diplomatic calendar is becoming a market variable in its own right, particularly for energy traders watching the region closely.
That's the tape. Markets Desk, signing off the floor.
