Oil above $100: Asian AI stocks hit highs in 2026 session

Oil rises as markets weigh AI optimism vs Hormuz risk

Oil prices moved higher in Asian trade as investors balanced strong enthusiasm around the artificial intelligence theme against worsening geopolitical risk linked to the Strait of Hormuz. The strait is a critical oil shipping route through which about one-fifth of the world’s oil is typically transported, making any restriction a direct supply concern. In early Monday trading, front-month West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose 2.0% to $16.30 per barrel. Front-month Brent crude futures gained 2.1% to $107.58 per barrel, according to ICE data cited in the report. The rise in crude came alongside mixed equity performance across Asia, underscoring that regional markets were not moving in lockstep. The day’s price action highlighted how oil supply risk can tighten financial conditions while some equity segments continue to rally on earnings momentum. Analysts also framed the session as one where geopolitics and the AI cycle were pushing different assets in different directions.

North Asia equities pushed to records by chip and electronics

Japan, South Korea and Taiwan outperformed as electronic and chip stocks drove a fresh leg higher. Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average rose 1.4% and closed above 60,000 for the first time. Taiwan’s Taiex ended up 1.8%, with gains led by TSMC. South Korea’s Kospi rose 2.2% as chip and robotics stocks advanced. Charu Chanana, chief investment strategist at Saxo, described the divergence bluntly, saying Asia was “not trading as one market.” She said Japan, Korea and Taiwan were being rewarded for their AI and hardware leverage, which was driving earnings momentum and attracting strong global investor flows. The performance contrasted with weaker moves in parts of Greater China, where investors continued to focus on domestic demand and confidence.

China and Hong Kong lag as policy and demand concerns persist

Elsewhere in the region, moves were modest or negative, reflecting different macro and policy narratives. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was recently 0.3% lower. China’s Shanghai Composite Index was 0.2% higher, while the tech-heavy ChiNext Price Index fell 0.5%. Chanana said China and Hong Kong still faced familiar questions about domestic demand, confidence, and policy follow-through. The split across North Asia and parts of China underscores why market participants increasingly segment “Asia” by earnings drivers and policy conditions rather than treating it as a single block. With oil risk rising, this segmentation became more pronounced.

Wall Street records add support to tech sentiment

U.S. equity cues were constructive for risk appetite in technology. Both the S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq posted record closing highs on Friday, according to the report. Two FX strategists at OCBC Group Research noted that U.S. equities had “held firm,” complicating the U.S. dollar outlook and pointing to what they called a potential regime shift. In their view, energy shocks were starting to “bite assets unevenly,” while AI-led equities showed unusual resilience. That framing fits the session’s pattern: oil was rising on supply stress, yet AI-linked equities in parts of Asia remained well bid.

Strait of Hormuz tensions remain a live driver for crude

The report pointed to persistent tensions around the Strait of Hormuz. President Trump scrapped a trip by U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Pakistan for talks with Iran. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps boarded two container ships near the Strait, according to the country’s Tasnim news agency, with the vessels identified as MSC Francesca and Epaminondas and reported as anchored near the channel. The U.S. also stopped an Iranian-flagged oil tanker, as Washington maintained a blockade of Iranian ports on the Strait. President Trump said Iran had about three days before the country’s oil pipelines risk explosion from being clogged up, raising concerns of further supply disruptions. With shipments from Iranian ports halted during the blockade, Iran would need to store oil, but the report noted storage capacity is limited.

What analysts said about supply stress and market sensitivity

Commerzbank Research analysts said energy markets remained on edge as the U.S. enforced a strict naval blockade to pressure Tehran. Priyanka Sachdeva, senior market analyst at Phillip Nova, said Brent’s move above $100 per barrel signalled supply stress. She also said the geopolitical backdrop remained far from stable and flows through the strait remained restricted. In her words, the message for energy markets was that global oil flows were vulnerable and the global economy continued to pay the price. These comments capture why crude can move sharply even when equity markets are not uniformly risk-off.

Another Asia session: mixed stocks, higher oil, cautious futures

A separate market update in the provided text described another mixed Asia session as rising oil prices and ongoing Middle East tensions weighed on sentiment. The MSCI Asia-Pacific index outside Japan edged up 0.3% and recorded a modest weekly gain of 0.8%. Japan’s Nikkei climbed 0.45%, while markets in South Korea, China, and Hong Kong declined in that snapshot. U.S. stock futures showed a partial recovery, with Nasdaq futures up 0.6% and S&P 500 futures up 0.1% after losses in the previous session. European futures pointed lower, with EUROSTOXX 50 futures down 0.65% and FTSE futures down 0.9%. Oil prices were again described as firm, with Brent up over 1% to $106.21 per barrel and U.S. crude at $16.77.

Key numbers to track: crude and equity moves

Market impact for India: oil sensitivity and risk appetite

For Indian markets, the same combination of higher crude and shifting risk appetite can be a key near-term input, particularly through inflation expectations and currency pressure. The provided text included a “Gift Nifty” headline indicating a muted start for Dalal Street amid West Asia tensions, explicitly linking local sentiment to the oil-geopolitics channel. Another market note in the text said Indian benchmarks ended lower on March 12 as Middle East tensions dampened investor sentiment, with the Sensex down 1.08% to 76,034.42 and the Nifty 50 down 0.95% to 23,639.15. While the wider Asia tape showed AI-linked pockets holding up, India’s near-term response often depends on whether crude remains elevated and whether volatility spills into broader risk assets.

Analysis: why AI strength and oil risk can coexist

The session’s central takeaway was the uneven transmission of an energy shock into equities. North Asia’s chip and hardware-heavy markets benefited from continued investor focus on AI-linked earnings momentum, helping them push to record highs even as oil rose on supply stress. At the same time, the Strait of Hormuz remained a structural risk factor for crude because restrictions or enforcement actions can directly reduce physical flows and raise the risk premium embedded in prices. Comments from OCBC strategists and Saxo’s Chanana fit the same idea: investors were willing to look through geopolitics where a strong structural story exists, and in this case that story was the AI backbone in Japan, Korea, and Taiwan. The dispersion across Hang Seng, Shanghai, and ChiNext also reinforced that domestic demand and policy expectations still matter when the AI narrative is less dominant.

Conclusion: oil remains the swing factor alongside AI-led equity leadership

Oil’s move higher alongside mixed Asian equities reflected a market trying to price two powerful forces at once: AI-led growth optimism and a live geopolitical supply risk centered on the Strait of Hormuz. Record highs in the Nikkei, Kospi, and Taiex underscored how strongly chip and hardware exposure is being rewarded in this phase of the cycle. At the same time, the reporting around the blockade, halted Iranian shipments, and restricted flows through the strait kept crude prices sensitive to headlines. The next market steps will likely continue to be driven by developments around shipping access through Hormuz and further signals on whether AI-linked earnings momentum can stay strong despite higher energy costs.