investingLive Asia-Pacific market news: Oil eases on Vance’s Iran outreach

RBA set for fifth 2026 hike to 4.85% as banks flag risk of another move in February More on Samsung: shares slide up to 6.6% as shareholder-return plan is delayed to January US government builds $30bn stock portfolio across 43 deals in chips, minerals and quantum Alphabet slides over 9% after hours as search miss and $9bn cash burn overshadow Cloud Samsung Q3 operating profit jumps ninefold to record 107 trillion won on AI chip boom RBNZ’s Breman says chances of a December rate hike are high after surprise hold at 2.75% PBOC sets USD/ CNY reference rate for today at 6.7147 (vs.

estimate at 6.6596) The view from China: CITIC Securities still sees a 25bp Fed hike in December NZ business confidence rises to +53 as pricing intentions hit highest since May Oil - The UAE’s second Hormuz bypass pipeline gets its firm timing; early 2027 Peltz-led group offers $1.4bn to take Wendy’s private at $7.35 a share, a 20% premium Hong Kong holds base rate at 4.25%: why the HKMA always moves in lockstep with the Fed Microsoft sees $170bn capex in fiscal 2027 but says it will stay cash flow positive Gold heads for its biggest yearly drop in 11 years as the Iran war lifts yields and the dollar Strategy's bitcoin buying hinges on one number: STRC at $100 Recap: Fed holds at 3.75%-4% in 10-2 vote as Cook dissents for a hike, December move in focus US bitcoin reserve buying 'very soon'? What has to happen first ICYMI: Oracle jumps around 11% on $225bn 2030 revenue goal and $20bn cap on new funding UBS sees limited gold downside as three demand pillars set a floor near $4,000 investingLive Americas FX news wrap 28 Oct: Fed holds rates, yield curve steepens as Big Tech earnings diverge Vance writes to Iran hard-liner Rezaei to revive talks as Trump weighs new strikes Alphabet Q3: Google Cloud revenue jumps 103% but search and ad sales miss forecasts Microsoft Q1 beats as Azure grows 48% and capex lands $6bn below forecast Summary: Oil drifted lower after reports that Vice President Vance wrote to Iranian hard-liner Mohsen Rezaei at Trump’s direction to revive peace talks Some analysts said Trump’s remarks implied the letter touched on the US blockade or frozen Iranian funds Gold held above $4,000 an ounce RBNZ Governor Breman said the chances of a December hike are high, a day after a surprise hold; the NZ dollar was little changed New Zealand business confidence rose to +53, with pricing intentions at their highest since May The HKMA held its base rate at 4.25%, in step with the Fed Microsoft shares rose after hours and Alphabet fell sharply A Peltz-led group offered $1.4 billion to take Wendy’s private Samsung posted record Q3 profit but its shares fell as much as 6.6% after it delayed its shareholder-return plan The Kospi fell 2.8%, the Shanghai Composite lost 0.8%, and the Nikkei and Hang Seng were flat Oil and Iran Oil prices drifted lower during the Asian session after reports that the United States is making a fresh diplomatic push with Iran.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Vice President JD Vance wrote to Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council and one of the country’s most powerful hard-liners, in an attempt to revive peace negotiations.

According to the report, the letter was sent at President Donald Trump’s direction, even as Trump has threatened to restart the war after next week’s midterm elections.

Later reporting added detail that suggested a more determined effort.

Some analysts said remarks Trump made to reporters implied the letter may have addressed either the US blockade of Iranian ports or the release of frozen Iranian funds, possibly around $6 billion held in Qatar that was originally freed for humanitarian imports.

Neither point has been confirmed.

ANZ cautioned that risks to oil prices remain elevated, citing repeated Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabian energy infrastructure.

Gold Gold held above $4,000 an ounce.

A Reuters poll published this week showed analysts cutting their 2026 forecast for a second straight quarter, citing high yields and a strong dollar linked to the Iran war, though they expect a recovery in 2027.

New Zealand Reserve Bank of New Zealand Governor Anna Breman said the chances of a December rate hike are high, adding that the whole committee agrees further increases are likely, though the timing is uncertain.

Her comments came a day after the RBNZ surprised markets by holding the cash rate at 2.75%.

The New Zealand dollar ended the session little changed.

Separately, the ANZ Business Outlook survey showed business confidence rising to +53 in October, with the share of firms planning price increases at its highest since May.

Hong Kong The Hong Kong Monetary Authority held its base rate at 4.25%, as expected, following the Federal Reserve’s decision to keep rates steady.

Under Hong Kong’s currency peg, the base rate is set 50 basis points above the lower end of the Fed funds target range.

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