Business and finance news from the Asia-Pacific.

The US-Israeli offensive against Iran has rattled energy markets, driving crude oil to multi-year highs on fears that disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz may choke supplies and reignite inflation. That came as equity investors confront stretched valuations after an artificial intelligence-fueled rally pushed stocks to elevated levels. We spoke to Winnie Wu, Head of APAC Equity Strategy at Bank of America Global Research.

Plus - Goldman Sachs Natural Gas Research Head Samantha Dart says a scenario where Brent crude prices cross the 100 dollar threshold as "possible" if the Strait of Hormuz were to experience several weeks of interrupted oil flow. She spoke to Bloomberg's Haidi Stroud-Watts and Avril Hong.

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Business and finance news from the Asia-Pacific.

Asian equities rebounded, with South Korea leading gains after its worst rout on record, as sentiment showed signs of a recovery following an initial bout of volatility sparked by the Middle East conflict. In China, they set a growth target of 4.5% to 5%, its most modest in more than three decades, in a shift towards more sustainable growth drivers. For more, we turn to Lianting Tu, Bloomberg's Managing Editor for Asia Equities.

Plus - Goldman Sachs Group Chief Executive Officer David Solomon said he's watching the private credit market for 'frothiness,' though he hasn't seen anything that gives him significant cause for concern. Speaking on the sidelines of the firm's inaugural 'Australia Week,' Solomon exclusively told Bloomberg that markets' 'benign' reaction reflects cautious stance on figuring out the endgame. He also shared his 'glass half full' outlook on the prospects for artificial intelligence.

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Business and finance news from the Asia-Pacific.

The US-Israeli attack on Iran has destabilized the Middle East and threatens to deliver a new inflationary shock to the US economy by pushing up oil prices. There's also no clear sense of when or how it will end, raising the prospect of prolonged conflict and unforeseen consequences beyond the White House's control. Focus is on oil amid fresh attacks which flared in the Middle East as traders weighed a US plan to insure and escort tankers passing through the Strait of Hormuz, with traffic in the vital waterway all but halted. For more perspective, we spoke to Rob Haworth, Senior Investment Strategy Director, U.S. Bank Asset Management Group.

Plus - South Korean stocks are experiencing significant declines amid heightened geopolitical tensions. Risk-off sentiment driven by the Iran war has been the primary catalyst for the selloff, with concerns about higher energy prices threatening growth in South Korea, the world's eighth-largest oil consumer. We heard from Kerry Craig, JPMorgan Asset Management Global Market Strategist. He spoke to Bloomberg TV Hosts Haidi Stroud-Watts and Avril Hong.

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Business and finance news from the Asia-Pacific.

Traders remained focused on oil with the commodity extending gains as the US and Israel stepped up their war against Iran, while Tehran threatened a full closure of the Strait of Hormuz — a crucial waterway for the movement of oil. Brent rose toward $79 a barrel after spiking about 7% on Monday. We spoke to Stephen Stapczynski, Bloomberg's Team Leader for Asia Energy.

Plus - The US sent conflicting messages about how long a war with Iran might last as Israel launched new airstrikes on Monday, with the widening conflict reverberating across the Middle East and upending energy markets. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday rejected the idea of an "endless" war with Iran. But President Donald Trump later insisted there was no fixed timeline. Both refused to rule out putting American boots on the ground. "Whatever the time is, it's okay — whatever it takes," Trump said. "Right from the beginning, we projected four to five weeks. But we have capability to go far longer than that." We heard from Mona Yacoubian, CSIS Director and Senior Adviser of the Middle East Program. She spoke to Bloomberg's David Ingles and Yvonne Man. 

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Business and finance news from the Asia-Pacific.

Oil surged by the most in four years, before paring some gains as traders assessed the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz triggered by the US-Israeli war against Iran. For more on the markets, we turn to Paul Dobson, Bloomberg's Executive Editor for Asia Markets.

Plus - President Donald Trump said the bombing campaign against Iran will continue until its objectives are achieved, calling on the nation's leaders to capitulate as a report indicated at least one top official in Tehran sought to resume nuclear talks with the US.  The actions in Iran have drawn criticism from members of Congress. We heard from Madeleine Dean, Democratic Congresswoman from Pennsylvania. She spoke to Bloomberg's Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz on Balance of Power. 

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The US and Israel began striking targets across Iran, with President Donald Trump urging Iranians to overthrow the government in a conflict that threatens to spiral across the oil-rich Middle East.   

“The hour for your freedom is at hand,” Trump said, addressing Iranians in a video posted on Truth Social on Saturday. “When we’re finished, take over your government. It will be yours to take. This will be probably your only chance for generations.”   

The military campaign could be a defining moment for Trump, risking a drawn-out regional war that leads to a surge in energy prices and American casualties ahead of mid-term elections this year. Iran quickly responded by firing missiles on Israel and US bases around the region, and countries in the Persian Gulf closed their airspace.  

Israel’s military said the campaign would target “dozens of military targets,” and Iran media reported strikes on defensive and civilian sites, including more than 50 people dead in a strike on a school in Hormozgan, in the south of the country. Several large explosions were reported in the capital, Tehran.   
Bloomberg's David Gura and Christina Ruffini lead our team coverage in this instant reaction podcast.

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Bloomberg Daybreak Weekend with Host Nathan Hager take a look at some of the stories we'll be tracking in the coming week.

• In the US – a look ahead to the February jobs report, along with a focus on 3 stocks for the week ahead.
• In the UK – a look ahead to "Made in Europe" the tagline of a new scheme to rejuvenate Europe's defense, energy, and manufacturing sectors.
• In Asia – a look ahead to China PMI data.

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Business and finance news from the Asia-Pacific.

Japanese tech stocks showed mixed performance today, with the broader market experiencing modest movements and individual tech names displaying varied results. Also, a Tokyo inflation gauge eased to the slowest pace in more than a year as Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's utility subsidies curbed household energy costs. We speak to Alice French, Bloomberg's Japan Stocks Reporter.. 

Plus -  US and Iranian officials ended the latest round of nuclear talks in Geneva on Thursday by agreeing to reconvene as soon as next week, opening the door to further diplomacy even as President Donald Trump masses military forces in the region. With just days to go before Trump's deadline to reach an agreement, the two sides agreed to resume discussions at a technical level in Vienna. Oil pared gains given the prospect of more talks, though there was no public reaction from the US side, led by special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner. A person familiar with the US position said the Americans were leaving Geneva disappointed with the progress of the talks. Axios reported earlier that Kushner and Witkoff were disappointed by what they heard from Iranian officials in their morning session. We heard from Mara Rudman, Miller Center Practitioner Senior Fellow and Former US Deputy Envoy and Chief of Staff for the Office of the Special Envoy for Middle East Peace. She spoke to Bloomberg TV hosts Haidi Stroud-Watts and Shery Ahn on the Asia Trade. 

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Nvidia gave another bullish forecast for quarterly revenue. CEO Jensen Huang said the enterprise adoption of AI agents is skyrocketing. That suggests it's not just hyperscalers buying Nvidia's products, corporations are as well. Fiscal first-quarter sales will be about $78 billion, the chipmaker said in a statement Wednesday. Though the average Wall Street estimate was $72.8 billion, some analysts had projected numbers approaching $80 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. To break down the latest earnings, we spoke to Daniel Newman, CEO at the Futurum Group.

Plus - Asian shares climbed for a fourth day as recent turmoil sparked by concerns over the impact of artificial intelligence subsided, though gains were tempered by a muted response to Nvidia Corp.'s upbeat sales forecast. We heard from Kieran Calder, Head of Equity Research for Asia at UBP. He spoke to Bloomberg TV hosts Haidi Stroud-Watts and Shery Ahn.

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Business and finance news from the Asia-Pacific.

Asian markets are outperforming the US and Europe, drawing global investors into AI supply-chain names such as chipmakers in South Korea and Taiwan. By contrast, US equities are under pressure as lingering uncertainty over President Donald Trump's tariffs and fears of AI-driven disruption prompt traders to shed shares of companies seen as vulnerable to displacement. For more on the markets, we speak to Lianting Tu, Bloomberg's Managing Editor for Asia Equities.

Plus - for additional analysis on the AI trade, we heard from Aoifinn Devitt, Managing Director at Moneta Global Wealth. She spoke to Bloomberg's Haidi Stroud-Watts and Shery Ahn on the 'Asia Trade'.

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