The electronic market board displays the Nikkei 225 stock price on the Tokyo Stock Exchange as of November 5, 2025.
Greg Baker AFP | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets reversed gains on Thursday as investors assessed US President Donald Trump’s address to the nation on the Iran war.
In his speech, President Trump reiterated that U.S. goals in Iran have largely been achieved and said “we hold all the cards” in the conflict. He also said the United States would attack Iran “very hard” over the next two to three weeks.
Early Wednesday morning, President Trump claimed that Iran’s “new president” had asked the United States for a ceasefire, a claim denied by the Iranian government.
President Trump said on Truth Social that the United States would only “consider” the proposal once the Strait of Hormuz is “open, free and transparent.”
The Wall Street Journal reported that President Trump previously said he was willing to halt military operations against Iran even if the Strait of Hormuz remained closed.
Korean Kospi The index fell 4.25%, leading Asia’s decline, while the small-cap Kosdaq fell 4.71%, with both indexes opening more than 1% higher.
Japanese Nikkei Stock Average After President Trump’s speech, TOPIX fell 1.5%, but fell 2.3%.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 started the day in positive territory, but fell 1.11%.
After the speech, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell by 1.08%, and mainland China’s CSI300 index fell by 0.77%.
U.S. stock futures fell, with S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures down more than 1%. Dow futures fell 439 points (0.94%).
Overnight in the U.S., the S&P 500 index rose 0.72%, while the Nasdaq Composite Index rose 1.16%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.48%.
—CNBC’s Lisa Kailai Han and Sean Conlon contributed to this report.
