Oil prices were little changed on Tuesday after falling in the previous session as a U.S. plan to buy oil for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) provided some support though wider concerns about weaker future demand growth exerted pressure.
Most Asian stocks were flat on Tuesday as focus turned to a barrage of key earnings due in the coming days, while Japanese markets extended gains after the country’s ruling coalition lost its parliamentary majority.
Most Asian stocks rose on Monday as concerns over the Israel-Iran conflict were soothed by a less severe than feared attack by Israel, while Japanese shares rose past increased political uncertainty.
Oil prices tumbled more than $3 a barrel on Monday after Israel's retaliatory strike on Iran over the weekend bypassed Tehran's oil and nuclear facilities and did not disrupt energy supplies, easing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.
China expressed concern over U.S. tariffs and Russia-related sanctions during a meeting of the two countries' Economic Working Group in Washington, China's finance ministry said on Saturday.
As per analysts at Citi Research, if a 60% universal tariff were imposed on Chinese goods entering the U.S., the economic impact on China would be severe, potentially reducing China’s GDP growth by an estimated 2.4 percentage points.