06:36 AM EDT, 06/04/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Asian stock markets fell back Thursday on overnight Wall Street cues and after media reports of fresh hostilities between US and Iranian forces, including a fresh barrage unleashed by Tehran upon the Kuwait International Airport.

Hong Kong, Shanghai and Tokyo finished in the red, as did most other regional exchanges, on the dimming outlook for a settlement that could re-open the Strait of Hormuz, the sea passageway vital to Asian Pacific crude supplies.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 opened lower and could not recover, finishing off 1.3% as traders weighed Middle East war reports against rich tech-sector valuations.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 fell 931.44 to 67,470.69, as losing issues outnumbered gainers 166 to 56.

Leading the upside was semiconductor manufacturing equipment maker Disco, up 5.1%, while tech financier SoftBank declined 11.3%.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index opened lower and drifted south, closing off 1.5%.

The broad gauge Hang Seng fell 379.81 to 25,253.40 as losing issues outnumbered gainers 75 to 12. The Hang Seng TECH Index lost 1.6% on the day, while the Mainland Properties Index fell 0.9%.

Leading the upside was toolmaker Techtronic, gaining 1.7%, while Contemporary Amperex Technology declined 7%.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite fell 0.6% to 4,057.78.

On the other regional exchanges, the South Korean KOSPI fell 1.8%; the Taiwan TWSE declined 1.7%; the Australian ASX 200 declined 1.1%; the Singapore Straits Times Index fell 1.4%, but the Thai Set advanced 0.4%. In late trading in Mumbai, the Sensex was steady.

The MSCI All Country Asia Pacific Index fell 1.7% on the day.