Asian markets mixed, oil prices retreat from recent highs

October 26, 2026 (MLN): Asian markets traded mixed on Monday, with Japan’s Topix advancing while major benchmarks across Japan, South Korea and Australia recorded losses.

Oil prices also declined after surging to their highest levels since April last week, while investors awaited the Federal Reserve’s upcoming interest rate decision.

Japan’s broader Topix index gained 0.37%, while the benchmark Nikkei 225 fell 0.2%. South Korea’s Kospi declined 0.3%, and the small-cap Kosdaq dropped 1.18%. Meanwhile, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.26%, according to CNBC.

In the commodities market, oil prices moved lower during Asian trading. Oil fell 1.31% to $115.19 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude declined 1.5% to $101.83 per barrel.

The decline followed a sharp rally last week, when oil prices reached their highest levels since April amid reports that the United States and Israel could be preparing strikes against Iran after the U.S. midterm elections.

Higher oil prices and broad-based selling weighed on Wall Street on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged more than 650 points, while the S&P 500 declined 0.5% and the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.2%. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq also recorded losses for a second consecutive week.

In Europe, France received some relief after Moody’s maintained the country’s Aa3 credit rating and negative outlook, easing concerns about a potential downgrade amid rising borrowing costs. France’s 10-year government bond yield touched 5% last week for the first time since 2002.

Moody’s said France would need to sustain significant fiscal efforts beyond the 2027 presidential elections to strengthen public finances and stabilize its debt burden, which is expected to exceed 120% of gross domestic product in 2027.

The agency added that the country’s outlook could be revised to stable if its institutions succeed in reducing the budget deficit.

Investors are now turning their attention to the Federal Reserve’s policy announcement scheduled for Wednesday. Interest rate futures indicate that markets largely expect policymakers to keep the federal funds target range unchanged at 3.75% to 4%.

However, Bank of America anticipates a 25-basis-point rate hike, describing such a decision as a challenging step for policymakers.

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