[MARKET ANALYSIS] Asia-Pac bourses under pressure amid the heightened geopolitical tensions, albeit it has cooled in recent trade

Asia-Pac stocks trade entirely in the red as geopolitical tensions rose, with the US Military and the Iranian Navy exchanging fire. Despite US President Trump announcing that the ceasefire remains in place, bourses fail to see any positivity. ASX 200 opened on the softer side and has extended lower in recent trade, nearly wiping out the gains seen in the past 2 sessions. Real estate and Financials weigh on the index, with Macquarie being dragged down despite reporting FY earnings that beat estimates. Nikkei 225 pulls back from the ATH formed in Thursday’s session amid the negative risk tone. SoftBank has dragged the Nikkei lower after ARM tumbled on smartphone market weakness and AI chip supply concerns. Sony reported FY25/26 earnings, with operating income missing estimates, and announced a JPY 500bln share buyback programme. KOSPI slips, as investors profit-take following the recent strength in the index, primarily driven by Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix.  Shanghai Comp. and Hang Seng follow the broader risk-off tone, with Shanghai Comp. outperforming its Asia-Pac peers with only modest losses. US equity futures initially began futures trade under modest pressure but have since reversed as trade progressed, now trading entirely in the green. European equity futures are indicative of a softer open with the Euro Stoxx 50 future -0.8% after cash closed -1.0% on Thursday.