World shares track Wall Street gains and oil prices climb on uncertainty over the Iran war

In early European trading, Britain's FTSE 100 was up 0.4% at 10,489.09. France's CAC 40 gained 0.5% to 8,124.02, while Germany's DAX climbed 0.7% to 24,779.16.

In Asia, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 rose 2.7% to 63,339.07, besting a record high close just over a week earlier. A report showed inflation hitting a four-year low in April, at 1.4%, despite higher prices for oil and gas due to the war.

South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.4% to 7,847.71.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng picked up 0.9% to 25,606.03, while the Shanghai Composite index climbed 0.9% to 4,112.90.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.4% to 8,657.00.

Taiwan’s Taiex closed 2.2% higher, while India’s Sensex rose 0.6%.

Oil prices remained elevated over disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for oil and gas transit, with shipping activities still well below before the Iran war began in late February. Talks between the U.S. and Iran have dragged on, adding to uncertainty.

Brent crude, the international standard, gained 2.8% to $105.48 a barrel. It was trading around $70 per barrel in February before the war’s start. Benchmark U.S. crude climbed 2.3% higher to $98.58 a barrel.

On Thursday, Republicans in Congress delayed into June planned votes on dismissing legislation that would compel President Donald Trump to withdraw from the war.

The House had scheduled a Thursday vote on a war powers resolution brought by Democrats that would rein in Trump’s military campaign. But as it became clear that Republicans would not have the numbers to defeat the bill, GOP leaders declined to hold a vote on it.

“Markets are still searching for signs of progress in a potential deal between the US and Iran,” ING commodities strategists Warren Patterson and Ewa Manthey wrote in a note on Friday. “While there are signs of optimism, uncertainty reigns.”

Wall Street gained on Thursday, with the benchmark S&P 500 adding 0.2% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.6%. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite edged up 0.1%.

Shares of Nvidia fell 1.8% despite better-than-expected quarterly results on the artificial intelligence frenzy, with some analysts believing its share price still is undervalued.

Southwest Airlines gained 2.7% and American Airlines climbed 4.9% as oil prices eased before bouncing back. Ralph Lauren surged 13.9% following stronger-than-expected quarterly results.

Easing oil prices helped alleviate pressure from the bond market as yields fell. Earlier this week, yields climbed so high they threatened to slow economies worldwide and undercut prices for stocks, bitcoin and all kinds of other investments.

In other dealings early Friday, the yield on the U.S. 10-year Treasury was at 4.56%, down from more than 4.67% earlier in the week, when higher global inflationary pressures stemming from the war fueled a surge in bond yields.

The U.S. dollar rose to 159.09 Japanese yen from 158.98 yen. The euro was trading at $1.1608, down from $1.1619.