Japanese and South Korean stock markets rise sharply, Trump predicts the Iraq war will end in "two or three weeks"

Ask AI · How Will Expectations for the End of War Boost Global Market Confidence?

In the early trading session on April 1 in Asian markets, stock markets in Japan and South Korea showed a strong trend of opening higher and continuing higher, with South Korea’s KOSPI index rising as much as 5.5%. In the overnight U.S. stock market, expectations that the war might be coming to an end drove a sharp rally in U.S. stocks.

On the morning of April 1, the Korea Composite Index opened up 5.45%. In terms of heavyweight stocks, SK SQUARE rose 8.68%, SK Hynix rose 8.67%, HYUNDAI ELECTRIC rose 7.69%, HYOSUNG HEAVY rose 7.29%, and Samsung Electronics rose 7.0%; Hyundai Heavy Industries fell 7.42%.

After the initial surge, the Korea Composite Index continued to move higher, with South Korea’s KOSPI index rising as much as 5.5%. According to the Korea Exchange, after KOSPI 200 index futures rose by more than 5%, KOSPI algorithmic trading was paused for 5 minutes.

Japan’s stock market also saw a pattern of opening higher and continuing to rise. As of the time of publication, the Nikkei 225 index was up as much as 3.7%, reaching 52,940.23 points at its peak.

The overnight U.S. stock market also saw a major rally. By the close that day, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1,125.37 points from the previous trading day, closing at 46,341.51 points, for a gain of 2.49%; the S&P 500 index rose 184.80 points, closing at 6,528.52 points, for a gain of 2.91%; and the Nasdaq Composite rose 795.99 points, closing at 21,590.63 points, for a gain of 3.83%.

The market’s surge was driven by expectations that the U.S.-Iran conflict might soon be coming to an end.

Xinhua News Agency reported that on March 31, U.S. President Trump signed an executive order at the White House, and told the media that the United States may end its military actions against Iran within two to three weeks.

“We’re going to pull out very soon,” Trump said. “I think about two to three weeks. We’ll leave because we don’t have a reason to keep doing it like this.”

Trump said he had only one goal: that Iran cannot have nuclear weapons, “and that goal has already been achieved.” The U.S. military is completing the final tasks, “I think it could be within two weeks—maybe a few more days.”

According to a report by CCTV News, on March 31 local time, Iranian President Pezeshkian said that Iran is willing to end the war, but only if its demands are met—especially guarantees that it will not be subjected to aggression again.

Also according to Xinhua News Agency, the White House on March 31 said that U.S. President Trump will deliver a nationwide address at 21:00 U.S. Eastern Time (9:00 a.m. Beijing time) on April 1 regarding the Iran issue, providing “important updates.” White House press secretary Leavitt made the above remarks on social media, but did not provide any further information.

However, regarding reopening the Strait of Hormuz for navigation, Xinhua News Agency reported that Trump said the United States does not have to be responsible for the Strait of Hormuz: “We have nothing to do with that,” and “That is the responsibility of all the countries that need to use this strait.”