Newsquawk Daily Asia-Pac Opening News - 23rd June 2026

US stocks were mixed on Monday, with the Nasdaq and S&P 500 closing lower while the Russell 2000 rallied and the Dow finished with slight gains. Sector performance was similarly mixed, with Real Estate, Energy and Health Care outperforming, while Communication Services and Consumer Discretionary were the clear laggards. A key driver of the weakness in the Nasdaq and S&P 500 was pressure in Alphabet (GOOGL), after DeepMind Vice President John Jumper departed the company to join Anthropic.
USD was broadly firmer against G10 FX peers, although the Pound was the clear gainer, in what was pretty light newsflow stateside to start the week. On that, there was no US data or Fed speak ahead of PCE later in the week. Recapping, over the weekend, Iran announced it shut the Strait of Hormuz due to continued Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon. However, the rhetoric and readouts became more positive overnight as Iran, Qatar and Pakistan all announced positive updates regarding talks with the US, while VP Vance later affirmed that a lot of progress was made and that the Strait is open.
Looking ahead, highlights include Australian, Japanese & Indian Flash PMIs, Japanese BoJ Core CPI, Singapore CPI, Supply from Australia & Japan.

LOOKING AHEAD

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IRAN CONFLICT

US President Trump said they are doing very well on the Hormuz Strait and it is totally open, with a lot of oil pouring out of the Hormuz Strait. Trump stated that they are negotiating with Iran and will see how it goes, while he added that Iran's frozen funds will be used to buy US agriculture. Trump stated if Iran doesn't stick to the agreement, he will do what he has to do, and as long as Iran respects us, we are not going to have any trouble, while he added the blockade could be restarted quickly if needed.
US President Trump said "Everybody is fully aware that Iran will agree to have Major Weapons Inspections in order to ensure “Nuclear Honesty” long into the future".
US VP Vance on Iran talks said they made a lot of progress and the Strait is open, while adding the US wants to ensure proper coordination and that Iranians have agreed to invite IAEA inspectors back. Vance said technical talks will continue in the weeks and days ahead and that a very good foundation has been laid for a successful final deal. Vance stated that when Iran says things that are not true, Trump responds and corrects the record, while nuclear inspections could possibly begin this week, perhaps as soon as today. Vance said the US wants a regional ceasefire and that Lebanon remains a work in progress with ongoing discussions, as well as stated that Trump still has many options if permanent peace can be achieved and that the process surrounding Iranian assets is intended to ensure funds benefit Iranians rather than terrorism.-
US VP Vance said he feels great about the progress they made, and they have set up a mechanism to make sure Hormuz stays open, while he added that they continue to make progress on technical talks and that Iranians are allowing inspectors in for the first time in a while. Furthermore, Vance said they will have to keep working on talks, and that Iranian money won't be unfrozen without progress.
Iranian President Pezeshkian said, on negotiations, that "Good openings have been created". It was also reported that Pezeshkian is expected to arrive in Islamabad, Pakistan on Tuesday, according to Al Mayadeen citing a Pakistani source.
Iran's top negotiator told state TV that the signing for the release of USD 12bln in frozen Iranian assets has been finalised in talks in Switzerland, and they have agreed to have a communication line regarding ship passage in the Strait of Hormuz to avoid conflict.
Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Baghaei said Iran will use all its levers to ensure the other party fulfils its commitments, according to Nour News. Baghaei said the joint statement from mediators Qatar and Pakistan, prepared in consultation with Iran and the US, envisaged mechanisms to monitor implementation of the MoU. He added that technical and expert-level talks would continue to advance implementation of the understanding to end the war, based on a "commitment for commitment" principle.
Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Baghaei said Iran's interaction with the IAEA will continue as usual. Baghaei added that Tehran did not negotiate on the nuclear file during the 18-hour talks and did not accept any new commitments.
US VP Vance's claim about the return of IAEA inspectors to the country is false, and there was no talk of the presence of inspectors in the country in the Swiss negotiations, according to Fars citing a source.
Qatari PM and FM told Al Jazeera they are continuing mediation efforts with Pakistan to bridge differences between the parties and that there will be many points of contention in negotiations between Washington and Tehran. They said some parties want to sabotage the negotiations but sensed determination from both sides to reach a solution, while they stated the occupation of Lebanese territory must end, Lebanon's sovereignty must be respected, and that the US is playing the right role regarding Israeli actions in Lebanon.
Qatar's role within the proposed mechanism will be in coordination with Saudi Arabia and will initially be limited to consolidating the ceasefire, while the withdrawal mechanism will be discussed in Washington, according to Al Jadeed.
Strait of Hormuz traffic has started to increase via Oman and Iran routes, while Hormuz maritime security threat has been lowered to moderate, according to JMIC.
Paris will obstruct the lifting of sanctions on Iran if it conflicts with its "security interests", according to Al Hadath citing a source in the French Foreign Ministry.
China's Foreign Minister Wang said China supports Iran in safeguarding its sovereignty, security and national dignity. Wang added that China is willing to continue providing assistance in its own way and to play a constructive role in restoring regional peace and stability at an early date.
Israeli PM Netanyahu said "we will remain in the security zone in southern Lebanon as long as necessary", Al Hadath reports.
Israel is mulling announcing symbolic withdrawals from occupied territories in southern Lebanon, according to a source cited by CNN.
Israel received a message from America stating, "The green light is over", according to Israeli Channel 13.
Israeli official told Channel 12 that they will withdraw from the proposed pilot zone in southern Lebanon, and Israel will present Lebanon with maps of the experimental zone during Washington talks on Tuesday.
There will be no Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon except through negotiations in Washington, given that the mechanisms for implementing the ceasefire agreement will only be discussed in Washington, according to military sources cited by Al Jadeed.
Lebanese delegation will push tomorrow for concrete Israeli steps regarding de-escalation and withdrawals, while Israel will insist on long-term security guarantees and the issue of Hezbollah's weapons as a fundamental element in any future arrangement.

US TRADE

US stocks were mixed on Monday, with the Nasdaq and S&P 500 closing lower while the Russell 2000 rallied and the Dow finished with slight gains. Sector performance was similarly mixed, with Real Estate, Energy and Health Care outperforming, while Communication Services and Consumer Discretionary were the clear laggards. A key driver of the weakness in the Nasdaq and S&P 500 was pressure in Alphabet (GOOGL), after DeepMind Vice President John Jumper departed the company to join Anthropic. Energy prices ultimately settled lower after initially gapping higher at the reopen. Iran announced it had closed the Strait of Hormuz following alleged ceasefire violations, but the move quickly reversed as signs of progress in negotiations emerged. Iranian officials later said significant progress had been made in talks in Switzerland, while Qatar and Pakistan both praised the constructive atmosphere surrounding discussions between the US and Iran. Additional downside pressure came after US VP Vance stated that the Strait remained open and said Iran had agreed to allow IAEA inspectors back into the country, although Iranian media disputed those claims about the inspectors. Crude prices also came under pressure after the US suspended sanctions on Iranian energy production, delivery and sales for 60 days, helping benchmarks fall to session lows before some profit-taking emerged into the settlement.
SPX -0.34% at 7,475, NDX -0.19% at 30,347, DJI +0.29% at 51,713, RUT +0.78% AT 3,003.
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NOTABLE HEADLINES

US President Trump signed Executive Orders on quantum innovation and to accelerate efforts to protect government systems from related cyber threats.
US President Trump is expected to meet with top executives from the largest US defence contractors on Wednesday, according to CBS citing sources.
US NEC Director Hassett said AI companies are printing money and added that there are profits everywhere in the AI sector.

FX

USD was broadly firmer against G10 FX peers, although the Pound was the clear gainer, in what was pretty light newsflow stateside to start the week. On that, there was no US data or Fed speak ahead of PCE later in the week. Recapping, over the weekend, Iran announced it shut the Strait of Hormuz due to continued Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon. However, the rhetoric and readouts became more positive overnight as Iran, Qatar and Pakistan all announced positive updates regarding talks with the US, while VP Vance later affirmed that a lot of progress was made and that the Strait is open.
EUR trickled lower throughout the day amid a firmer buck, while there were comments from ECB President Lagarde, who appeared somewhat dovish, as she noted that there is no evidence yet of de-anchoring of inflation expectations or second-round effects that would warrant a more forceful policy response at this stage.
GBP was the sole G10 currency in the green against the Greenback, and saw little move after PM Starmer resigned, leading the way for Burnham to lead his PM campaign. However, UK assets were bid after Streeting released a statement endorsing Burnham, significantly reducing the odds of a leadership contest and also potentially setting Streeting up to be Chancellor, an outcome which would be much more welcome than other options, such as Miliband.
JPY continued to weaken and USD/JPY hit a peak just shy of the 162.00 level before seeing some sharp moves lower through the US session, with the moves attributed to media reports that Japanese Finance Minister Katayama and US Treasury Secretary Bessent held talks online, where they likely discussed the foreign exchange market.

FIXED INCOME

T-notes were sold across the curve despite soft energy prices as markets continued to digest the hawkish Fed shift

COMMODITIES

Oil prices were ultimately lower in a choppy day of trade to start the week as geopolitical headlines remained in focus, with optimism spurred by progress made during US-Iran talks in Switzerland.
US Treasury's OFAC issued Iran General License X, "Authorizing the Production, Delivery and Sale of Crude Oil, Petrochemical Products, and Petroleum Products of Iranian-Origin through August 21, 2026". The license does not include transactions involving North Korea, Cuba, or Ukraine.
Qatar’s Energy Minister said what happened at Ras Laffan was an accident and not an aggression or sabotage, and has not impacted export capabilities. The minister added that it is difficult to determine when operations at the affected factory will resume and that assessing the damage will take some time.
US will reportedly release 500k bbls of crude oil from the SPR to Vitol.

EU/UK

NOTABLE HEADLINES

UK PM Starmer announced he will step down, while nominations for Labour leader will open on July 9th and conclude by the summer recess on July 16th, with Starmer to act as caretaker until a new leader is elected.
UK MP Burnham said he will put himself forward to be PM, while MP Streeting backed Burnham to be PM.
ECB's Lagarde said "we remain well positioned to navigate the uncertainty caused by the war. We will closely monitor developments and follow a data-dependent and meeting-by-meeting approach". Lagarde added "The shock is too large to look through without jeopardising our target. But we see no evidence yet of de-anchoring of inflation expectations or second-round effects that would warrant a more forceful policy response at this stage." She also said the ECB is not using the neutral range to make policy decisions and that some loss of anchoring has been seen in short-term inflation expectations.
ECB's Escriva warned that rising oil and commodity prices linked to the Middle East conflict are feeding into consumer prices and could cause wage spillovers. Escriva said energy cost increases are already transmitting through areas such as transport services and that the ECB must monitor possible second-round wage effects depending on inflation persistence.

DATA RECAP

EU Consumer Confidence Flash (Jun) -17.7 vs. Exp. -18 (Prev. -19)