Asian Markets Drop as Oil Surge Triggers Rate Hike Fears

📉 ASIA — Oil shock exports to equities; rate hikes are doing Tehran's work for free. 📌 LOOK CLOSER: Asian markets falling as oil holds above $100 signals the second-order transmission: energy inflation forces central bank tightening, compressing valuations without any direct strike. For Japan, South Korea, and India — major import-dependent economies — this is Hormuz arriving in domestic bond and equity markets. The blockade doesn't need to last forever to restructure global capital flows.