Global Shares Decline; Oil Prices Soar 03/30 05:10

   Asian shares mostly dipped Monday, as worries continued about soaring oil 
prices and the potential for further escalation in the U.S. war with Iran, but 
shares rose moderately in Europe in early trading. U.S. futures were also 
higher.

   TOKYO (AP) -- Asian shares mostly dipped Monday, as worries continued about 
soaring oil prices and the potential for further escalation in the U.S. war 
with Iran, but shares rose moderately in Europe in early trading. U.S. futures 
were also higher.

   France's CAC 40 edged up 0.2% in early trading to 7,716.30, while Germany's 
DAX added 0.1% to 22,344.39. Britain's FTSE 100 added 0.8% to 10,041.91.

   U.S. shares were set to drift higher with Dow futures gaining 0.4% to 
45,625.00, while the S&P 500 futures rose 0.5% to 6,445.00. Wall Street 
finished last Friday with deep declines, for a fifth straight losing week, its 
longest such streak in nearly four years.

   Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 slipped 2.8% to finish at 51,885.85. 
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.7% to 8,461.00. South Korea's Kospi dove 3.0% to 
5,277.30. Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 0.8% to 24,750.79, while the Shanghai 
Composite reversed course in the afternoon and was up 0.2% at 3,923.29.

   Worries have been great in Japan and the rest of Asia about the effective 
lack of access to the Strait of Hormuz because of the war in Iran, as the 
region relies greatly on such access for oil shipments.

   In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude jumped $1.95 to $101.59 a barrel. 
Brent crude, the international standard, soared $3.41 to $115.98 a barrel. 
Before the war, Brent had been priced at about $70 to a barrel.

   Investors are now bracing for the war to last for some time, which would 
likely set off inflation in global markets, and eventually may stunt Asia's 
economic growth.

   "Although we do not expect the conflict to be protracted, we anticipate 
heightened volatility in the near term," said Xavier Lee, senior equity analyst 
at Morningstar Research.

   Oil prices are again climbing after momentarily easing when President Donald 
Trump extended a self-imposed deadline to "obliterate" Iran's power plants to 
April 6.

   Alarm has been resounding in Japan about the declining value of the yen. In 
currency trading, the U.S. dollar inched down to 159.76 Japanese yen from 
160.32 yen. The euro cost $1.1494, down from $1.1510.

   "In addition to the crude oil futures market, speculative activity is also 
said to be increasing in the foreign exchange market," Vice Finance Minister 
Atsushi Mimura said.

   "As we have already stated, we will respond on all fronts, and our focus is 
spread in all directions," he told reporters, without giving specifics on the 
possible action.