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TOKYO — <\/span>Asian markets that were open for trading mostly rose Monday, as investors continued to closely watch the war in Iran<\/a>, soaring oil prices and what President Donald Trump might say next. <\/p>\n Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 0.7% to 53,514.39 in afternoon trading. South Korea’s Kospi gained 1.4% to 5,450.33. Trading was closed in Australia for Easter, and in Hong Kong and Shanghai for a traditional Chinese holiday.<\/p>\n Trump threatened to hit Iran\u2019s critical infrastructure hard if the country\u2019s government doesn\u2019t reopen the Strait of Hormuz by his Tuesday deadline. But there was no sign Iran was easing its closure of the strait<\/a> crucial to global oil supplies.<\/p>\n The market is keeping focused on oil prices. <\/p>\n Benchmark U.S. crude lost 42 cents to $111.12 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, added 64 cents to $109.67 a barrel. Energy markets were closed Friday, but the prices have been surging lately on fears that the Iran war will drag on longer than expected. <\/p>\n The U.S. relies on the Persian Gulf for only a fraction of the oil it imports, but oil is a commodity and prices are set in a global market. Some nations, like resource-poor Japan, import a large portion of their energy needs and rely heavily on access to the Strait of Hormuz. <\/p>\n Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi told lawmakers recently that Japan was releasing its reserves and was working on alternative routes. South Korea’s trade ministry said it plans to send at least five ships to Saudi Arabi in the coming weeks to establish new oil transport routes in the Red Sea. <\/p>\n \u201cAs we kick off the first full trading week of April, the word uncertainty is paramount. Last year it was centered on the impact of \u2018Liberation Day\u2019 tariffs, this year it’s uncertainty surrounding the ongoing Iranian War,\u201d said Jay Woods, analyst at Freedom Capital Markets in New York. <\/p>\n U.S. markets were closed for Good Friday and will reopen Monday. Some markets in Europe also did not trade on Friday.<\/p>\n In currency trading, the U.S. dollar inched down to 159.56 Japanese yen Monday from 159.63. The euro cost $1.1523, up from $1.1517.<\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n Associated Press writers Kim Tong-Hyung in Seoul and Matt Ott in Washington contributed to this report.<\/p>\n Yuri Kageyama is on Threads: https:\/\/www.threads.com\/@yurikageyama<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n