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Oil prices dip, most stocks rise on lingering Iran peace hopes

Oil prices fell on Tuesday while most stocks rose on lingering hopes for a deal to end the US-Iran war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, even as Tehran said it had not decided whether to attend peace talks.

With the end of a two-week ceasefire approaching, the White House said Vice President JD Vance was ready to return to Pakistan for fresh negotiations to end a conflict that has sent crude soaring and revived inflation fears.

However, the Islamic Republic’s position remained uncertain as it accused Washington of violating its fragile truce through its blockade of the country’s ports and seizure of a ship.

Crude plunged on Friday after Tehran said it would allow ships to transit the Strait of Hormuz, which had been effectively closed since the war began on February 28.

But the commodity rebounded on Monday as Iran closed the waterway again, citing the blockade and seizure.

Donald Trump has similarly accused Tehran of violating the ceasefire by harassing vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, the transit passage for about one-fifth of global oil.

The US president said the blockade would not be lifted until an agreement had been reached.

“THE BLOCKADE, which we will not take off until there is a ‘DEAL,’ is absolutely destroying Iran,” Trump said on social media. “They are losing $500 Million Dollars a day, an unsustainable number, even in the short run.”

He told PBS News that Iran was “supposed to be there” at the talks in Pakistan.

“We agreed to be there,” he said, warning that if the ceasefire expired “then lots of bombs start going off”.

He separately told Bloomberg News it was “highly unlikely” he would extend the truce.

Based on its start time, the truce theoretically expires overnight on Tuesday, Iran time, although in his comments to Bloomberg Trump said the end was Wednesday evening Washington time.

The Middle Eastern country’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said “Trump wants to turn this negotiating table into a surrender table or justify renewed hostilities, as he sees fit”.

“We do not accept negotiations under the shadow of threats, and in the last two weeks we have been preparing to show new cards on the battlefield,” he wrote on X.

Still, investors remained largely upbeat that the two sides will eventually come to a deal that will reopen the strategic strait.

US benchmark crude West Texas Intermediate rose more than 1%, while Brent was also higher.

Tech rally

Seoul led the equity market gains thanks to a resumption of the tech rally that had pushed the Kospi to multiple records before the war, while Tokyo and Taipei were also well up.

Hong Kong, Singapore and Manila also advanced, although Shanghai and Sydney fluctuated.

That came even after a down day on Wall Street, where the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite retreated from Friday’s record closes.

Asia had opened “with a gentle lean into risk as signs Iran may join talks with the US offer a pathway, however narrow, toward easing tensions ahead of the ceasefire deadline”, wrote SPI Asset Management’s Stephen Innes.

“Markets are pricing the possibility of progress rather than its certainty,” he said.

“Trump’s remark that a ceasefire extension is ‘highly unlikely’ if no deal is reached has effectively put a clock on the market.

“However, traders recognise the playbook. Hard deadlines and firm rhetoric often soften as negotiations evolve, but the presence of a timeline still sharpens positioning and raises the stakes around each headline.”

In company news, Japanese arms firms enjoyed healthy buying after Tokyo said on Tuesday it would ease decades-old export rules, paving the way for the sale of lethal weapons overseas.

The policy shift, which ends Tokyo’s self-imposed restraint on the sale of lethal arms, comes as it seeks to enter the international arms market, hoping to bolster national defence as well as boost economic growth.

Fujitsu climbed 2.4%, NEC added 3.7% and Mitsubishi Electric was up 0.9%, while Mitsubishi Heavy gained 0.4%.

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Water supply in parts of Karachi to remain suspended for two days: KWSC

KARACHI: The Karachi Water and Sewerage Corporation (KWSC) on Friday announced that water supply in parts of the port city would remain suspended for two days starting Saturday due to work at the Dhabeji Pumping Station.

In a statement, a KWSC spokesperson said the supply would be temporarily suspended to connect a newly constructed line with the existing network at the Dhabeji Pumping Station.

As per the new schedule issued by the water distribution body, nine of the pumps at the station will remain shut for 48 hours, the spokesperson added.

Work at the pumping station will begin at 12 noon on April 25, the official said, adding that seven out of nine pumps will resume operations on April 27.

The remaining two pumps will be shut for another five days, the official added.

The spokesperson said that water supply to parts of Karachi would remain temporarily suspended during the period due to disruption from K2 and K3.

Water supply in North Karachi, Surjani, Scheme 33, Gulistan-e-Jauhar, Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Saddar, Landhi, Korangi and Chanesar Town would remain suspended for 48 hours, the spokesperson added.

Hydrants in Nipa, Safoora and Sakhi Hassan will also remain closed due to maintenance, the spokesperson added.

Due to the closure, the city will face a shortage of about 250 million gallons of water per day, the official said, adding that Karachi is supplied with around 650 million gallons daily.

KWSC urged residents of the affected areas to use water efficiently during the work, the spokesperson added.

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Islamabad police issue updated traffic plan ahead of potential US-Iran talks

Islamabad: Traffic Police (ITP) has issued a special traffic plan for the federal capital, with complete closure of the Red Zone and extended Red Zone, along with suspension of traffic on Islamabad Expressway from Korral to Zero Point.

According to the advisory, traffic on the Srinagar Highway may also be stopped at different times due to security arrangements.

The advisory comes amid Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi’s expected arrival in Islamabad on Friday night, without providing details about who he was likely to meet.

Iranian state media reported that Araghchi will depart on Friday (today) for a tri-nation tour that includes visits to Islamabad, Muscat and Moscow.

“The purpose of this visit is to hold bilateral consultations and discuss current developments in the region, as well as the latest situation in the war imposed by the United States and the Israeli regime against Iran,” the state news agency IRNA said.

Meanwhile, US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will head to Pakistan on Saturday for a new round of talks with Iran on ending the war, the White House said.

“I can confirm Special Envoy Witkoff and Jared Kushner will be off to Pakistan again tomorrow morning to engage in talks,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News on Friday.

Leavitt said that Vance remained ready to fly to Pakistan but will not for now. “Everyone will be on standby to fly to Pakistan if necessary,” she said.

Islamabad has been gearing up for an anticipated second round of talks between the United States and Iran. The talks would come more than two weeks after Vice President JD Vance held the first round of talks with Iranian representatives in Pakistan.

During the first round of talks in Pakistan, Vance said that Iran refused US demands on constraints on its contested nuclear programme.

In its advisory issued today, ICT Police said that entry of all types of heavy traffic into Islamabad will remain banned, while transporters have been advised to avoid travelling towards the capital.

Residents of G-5, G-6, G-7, F-6 and F-7 can use Margalla Road and 9th Avenue for travel to and from Rawalpindi. Traffic from Faisal Avenue towards Zero Point will be diverted to 9th Avenue.

In case of closure between Zero Point and Korral Chowk, commuters can use Srinagar Highway to 9th Avenue, then Stadium Road, Murree Road (Chandni Chowk) and Rawal Road to reach Korral.

Traffic from Park Road towards Club Road will be diverted to Tramri Chowk.

Commuters travelling from Bhara Kahu to Rawalpindi are advised to use Korang Road, Bani Gala and Lehtrar Road.

Traffic from Rawalpindi Saddar to Islamabad can use Colonel Sher Khan Road via Faqir Aipee Road or 9th Avenue.

Heavy traffic from Peshawar to Lahore will be diverted via Taxila Motorway, Chakri Interchange, Chak Beli Road and Rawat GT Road.

Similarly, heavy traffic from Lahore to Peshawar will use Rawat GT Road, Chak Beli Road, Chakri Interchange and Taxila via the motorway. The traffic plan will come into force from Saturday.

Citizens have been advised to follow alternate routes and cooperate with the traffic police.

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Pakistan urges UNSC to push India to restore Indus Waters Treaty a year after its suspension

UNITED NATIONS: Pakistan has urged the UN Security Council (UNSC) to address India’s suspension of the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), warning of “grave” security, environmental, and humanitarian risks for 240 million people.

A letter from Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister, Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar, addressed to Ambassador Jamal Fares Alrowaiei of Bahrain, which hold the 15-member Council’s presidency for the month of April, draws attention to India’s “illegal” decision to hold the IWT in abeyance one year after its suspension amid heightened political tensions with Pakistan.

The letter was handed over to the Security Council President by the Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the United Nations, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, at UN Headquarters in New York on Thursday, according to a press release issued by the Pakistani Mission.

DPM/FM Dar urged the Security Council to take cognizance of the alarming situation and call on India to restore the full implementation of IWT, resume all Treaty-mandated cooperation and data-sharing without delay, desist from any form of water coercion, and comply fully with its international obligations in good faith.

In this regard, Ambassador Asim Ahmad also briefed the Security Council president on the “regurgitation of baseless allegations and propaganda by India at a time when Pakistan is engaged in serious mediation efforts to promote regional and international peace and security.”

The Pakistani envoy also underscored that the unresolved Jammu and Kashmir dispute – a longstanding item on the Security Council’s agenda – was the root cause of instability in South Asia that necessitated a just and lasting settlement in accordance with relevant Council’s resolutions and wishes of the Kashmiri people.

The 66-year-old treaty governs the distribution of waters from the Indus river system, allocating the western rivers, Indus, Jhelum and Chenab, primarily to Pakistan, which depends on them for most of its agriculture. The agreement has long been seen as one of the most durable arrangements between the two countries, surviving wars and decades of hostility.

However, India announced on Apr. 23, 2025 it was holding the treaty in abeyance. The move came as India, without producing any evidence, accused Pakistan of being behind a militant attack in Indian-Occupied Kashmir. Pakistan categorically denied any involvement it in the attack, which led to a brief but intense military conflict between the two countries in May 2025.