Asian shares are mostly rising, echoing the rally on Wall Street that came as oil prices eased on hopes the United States and Iran may try again on talks to end their war. Benchmarks rose in Wednesday afternoon trading in Tokyo, Seoul and Hong Kong, while changing little in Sydney and Shanghai. U.S. and Brent crude were little changed from their overnight fall. U.S. stocks rallied to the edge of their all-time high, with the S&P 500 rising 1.2%, bringing the index within 0.2% of its record set in January. The Dow gained 0.7%, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 2%. Lower oil prices help bring down costs for all kinds of businesses.
