Global shares jittery, oil rebounds

March 14: Stocks were on tenterhooks and oil prices rose in choppy trade on Tuesday as US President Donald Trump's postponement of the bombing of Iran's power grid proved no panacea for investors worried about the ramifications of the Middle East war.

US Treasury yields pushed higher and the dollar regained lost ground, in a retracement of the relief rally that swept markets overnight after Trump added five days to his Saturday ultimatum for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours, citing "productive" talks Tehran.

Much uncertainty remained as the world continues to grapple with an energy shock while Iran denied that it had engaged in negotiations with the US.

"The underlying situation is still incredibly fragile or flammable," said IG market analyst Tony Sycamore.

"It doesn't seem like all of the parties are on the same page... Trump can talk all he likes, but the Strait (of Hormuz) is closed and it's staying closed until all the Iranians get on the same page, and that's where we've got a problem."

Asia shares were up on Tuesday in a catch-up rally to global counterparts. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 1%, while Tokyo's Nikkei advanced 0.8%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index added 1.4%.

But US futures turned lower after Wall Street ended higher in the overnight cash session. Nasdaq futures were down 0.6%, while S&P 500 futures lost 0.5%.

EUROSTOXX 50 futures similarly slid 0.9% and FTSE futures edged 0.8% lower.    �"Reuters