Oil Jumps on Hormuz Blockade; Tech Selloff Deepens

Oil prices surged in early Asian trading Tuesday after a new blockade in the Strait of Hormuz disrupted tanker traffic, while U.S. tech stocks extended their slide on fresh regulatory jitters.

Brent crude climbed above $78 a barrel for the first time in three weeks after Iranian authorities halted a tanker carrying Iraqi crude, citing a dispute over maritime boundaries. The strait handles about 20% of global oil shipments. Traders said the move raised the risk of a broader disruption, though no other vessels had been stopped as of Tuesday morning in Asia.

Nasdaq futures fell 0.6% after the White House announced a new executive order requiring pre-release review of large AI models. Microsoft dropped 4.2% in after-hours trading. The order targets models trained on more than 10^26 floating-point operations, a threshold that covers the largest systems from OpenAI, Google, and Meta.

Australian shares looked set for a mixed open. SPI 200 futures were flat near 7,850, while energy stocks were expected to rise on the oil move. Tech-heavy names like WiseTech Global and Xero faced pressure from the U.S. selloff.

The Reserve Bank of Australia releases its April meeting minutes at 11:30 a.m. AEST. Markets are pricing a 15% chance of a rate hike in May, down from 25% a week ago.

Gold held near $2,380 an ounce, supported by safe-haven demand and a weaker dollar. The dollar index slipped 0.2% against a basket of major currencies.

Traders said the session hinged on whether the Hormuz disruption broadens and whether the AI order triggers further tech selling in U.S. hours.