{"id":59894,"date":"2026-03-18T00:38:26","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T04:38:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/global-markets-rally-as-iraq-kurdish-oil-deal-eases-energy-supply-fears-starbucks-downgraded\/59894\/"},"modified":"2026-03-18T00:38:26","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T04:38:26","slug":"global-markets-rally-as-iraq-kurdish-oil-deal-eases-energy-supply-fears-starbucks-downgraded","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/global-markets-rally-as-iraq-kurdish-oil-deal-eases-energy-supply-fears-starbucks-downgraded\/59894\/","title":{"rendered":"Global Markets Rally as Iraq-Kurdish Oil Deal Eases Energy Supply Fears; Starbucks Downgraded"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Oil prices tumbled<\/strong> as Brent fell <strong>$2.36<\/strong> and WTI dropped <strong>$3.08<\/strong> following a breakthrough deal between Iraq and Kurdish authorities to resume northern exports.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Asian equity markets rallied<\/strong> significantly, led by a <strong>4% gain in the KOSPI<\/strong> and a <strong>2.65% rise in the Nikkei 225<\/strong> as energy supply risks receded.<\/li>\n<li><strong>RBC Capital downgraded Starbucks (<a href=\"\/stock\/SBUX\">SBUX<\/a>)<\/strong> to Sector Perform from Outperform, citing concerns over the company&#39;s valuation and growth trajectory.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Japanese Government Bond (JGB) yields slipped<\/strong>, with the 10-year yield falling <strong>4 basis points to 2.225%<\/strong> amid a shift in investor sentiment.<\/li>\n<li><strong>ByteDance<\/strong> is pivoting its gaming strategy, with its gaming chief indicating that the multi-billion dollar sale of <strong>Moonton<\/strong> is aimed at securing a long-term <strong>strategic partnership<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Energy Markets React to Iraq Export Breakthrough<\/h2>\n<p>Global crude prices saw a sharp correction on Wednesday after the <strong>Iraqi federal government<\/strong> and <strong>Kurdish Regional Government (KRG)<\/strong> reached a definitive agreement to resume oil exports. The deal allows for the flow of crude through the <strong>Kurdistan pipeline<\/strong> to Turkey\u2019s <strong>Ceyhan energy hub<\/strong>, providing a vital alternative route while the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Brent crude<\/strong> futures dropped <strong>$2.36<\/strong>, while <strong>U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI)<\/strong> futures slid <strong>$3.08<\/strong> to settle at <strong>$94.07<\/strong> per barrel. <em>Market participants viewed the deal as a critical relief valve for global supply<\/em>, which has been severely constrained by ongoing Middle East hostilities. The resumption of northern exports is expected to partially offset the 70% plunge in production from Iraq&#39;s southern fields.<\/p>\n<h2>Asian Equities Surge on Easing Supply Risks<\/h2>\n<p>The easing of energy tensions sparked a massive relief rally across Asian trading floors. In Tokyo, the <strong>Nikkei 225<\/strong> climbed <strong>2.65%<\/strong>, continuing its recent record-breaking momentum. Meanwhile, South Korea\u2019s <strong>KOSPI<\/strong> led regional gains with a robust <strong>4% rally<\/strong>, as investors moved back into risk assets following weeks of geopolitical volatility.<\/p>\n<p>In the fixed-income market, <strong>Japanese Government Bond (JGB)<\/strong> yields retreated as the equity surge reduced safe-haven demand. The <strong>10-year JGB yield<\/strong> slipped <strong>4 basis points to 2.225%<\/strong>, while the <strong>5-year yield<\/strong> fell <strong>3 basis points to 1.650%<\/strong>. <em>This downward move in yields reflects a stabilization in inflation expectations<\/em> as energy prices cooled.<\/p>\n<h2>Corporate and Analyst Developments<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Starbucks (<a href=\"\/stock\/SBUX\">SBUX<\/a>)<\/strong> faced pressure after <strong>RBC Capital<\/strong> lowered its rating on the coffee giant to <strong>Sector Perform<\/strong> from Outperform. Analysts noted that while operational improvements are visible in the U.S. market, ongoing cost pressures and soft demand in China continue to cloud the near-term margin recovery.<\/p>\n<p>In the financial sector, <strong>JP Morgan<\/strong> adjusted its outlook for several U.K.-listed firms. The bank cut its price target for wealth manager <strong>St. James\u2019s Place (<a href=\"\/stock\/STJ\">STJ<\/a>)<\/strong> to <strong>1711p<\/strong> from 1740p. Similarly, the target for high-performance polymer manufacturer <strong>Victrex (<a href=\"\/stock\/VCT\">VCT<\/a>)<\/strong> was reduced to <strong>625p<\/strong> from 725p, <em>reflecting broader macroeconomic concerns and sector-specific headwinds<\/em>.<\/p>\n<h2>Geopolitical and Commodity Briefs<\/h2>\n<p><strong>ByteDance<\/strong> is reportedly in advanced stages of selling its gaming subsidiary, <strong>Moonton Technology<\/strong>, for an estimated <strong>$6 billion to $7 billion<\/strong>. The company&#39;s gaming chief clarified that the sale is intended to foster a <strong>strategic partnership<\/strong>, likely with Saudi Arabia&#39;s <strong>Savvy Games Group<\/strong>, as the TikTok parent company shifts its focus toward artificial intelligence and social media.<\/p>\n<p>Elsewhere, <strong>Petrobangla<\/strong> officials stated that <strong>Bangladesh<\/strong> will purchase two spot <strong>LNG cargoes<\/strong> to mitigate potential supply disruptions. In regional security news, Iranian state media reported the execution of an individual, identified as <strong>Kurosh Keyvani<\/strong>, who was convicted of spying for Israel\u2019s <strong>Mossad<\/strong> intelligence agency.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Key Takeaways Oil prices tumbled as Brent fell $2.36 and WTI dropped $3.08 following a breakthrough deal between Iraq and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":50383,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"rank_math_schema_Article":[],"rank_math_focus_keyword":[],"rank_math_description":[],"financial_data_references":[],"stock_symbols_mentioned":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[5012],"tags":[846,970,1947,3249,5112,5137,6455],"class_list":["post-59894","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-breaking-news","tag-sbux","tag-wti","tag-oil","tag-krg","tag-jgb","tag-kospi","tag-nikkei"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59894","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59894"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59894\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50383"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59894"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59894"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59894"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}