Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari said on Tuesday that the Iran conflict has increased uncertainty about the U.S. economic outlook and made it harder to know what lies ahead for central bank interest rate policy.
Investors rushed to lock in a spike in oil prices this week, resulting in a record volume of energy futures and options contracts changing hands on Monday, the first trading day after Israel and the U.S. bombed Iran and Tehran retaliated.
Oil prices rose in Asian trading on Wednesday after two days of sharp gains, as an intensifying conflict between the U.S., Israel, and Iran kept supply disruption risks at the forefront of investor concerns.
The U.S. dollar rallied further on Tuesday, as the widening conflict in the Middle East resulted in the greenback solidifying its status as a global safe-haven.
Asian markets skidded on Wednesday, with investors cutting crowded positions in gold and chipmakers on worries a wider Mideast war could deliver an energy shock that raises inflation and delays rate cuts.
New vehicle sales in Taiwan plunged about 37 percent sequentially last month as the long Lunar New Year holiday and 228 Peace Memorial Day holiday cut short the number of working days, along with the lingering uncertainty over import tax cuts on US vehicles, market researcher U-Car said in a report yesterday.