Emerging market assets rallied following signals of easing tensions between the United States and Iran. On Wednesday, the MSCI Emerging Markets Index, a global benchmark for equities in developing economies, surged more than 3%, while a comparable index for emerging market currencies rose 0.7%—both poised for their first gains in five trading sessions.

Asian emerging market equities led the advance, with South Korea's Composite Index closing up over 8% on Wednesday. Technology stocks in Asia stood out particularly, as chipmakers such as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix each climbed more than 10%.

On March 31, U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters while signing an executive order at the White House that American military operations against Iran could end within two to three weeks. "We’ll be leaving shortly," Trump said. "I would say two to three weeks. We’ll be gone, because we have no reason to be there." He emphasized that his sole objective was to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, adding, "and that objective has been achieved." Trump noted that U.S. forces were completing final tasks and suggested operations might conclude "within two weeks, maybe a little more." He also indicated that if an agreement were reached with Iran, hostilities could end even sooner, but stressed that a deal was not necessary—"If they want to sit down and talk, that’s fine. But it doesn’t matter if they come or not."

Meanwhile, Iranian President Pezeshkian stated on March 31 that Iran has the "necessary willingness" to end the war, provided its demands are met, particularly guarantees against further aggression. In a reported phone call with the President of the European Council, Pezeshkian said the solution to normalizing the situation was to halt aggressive attacks by the U.S. and Israel. He reiterated that Iran never sought escalation or conflict at any stage and possesses the "necessary willingness to end this war."

Michael Wan, senior currency analyst at Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, noted in a report that despite high oil prices, risk-on sentiment and a "revival in Asian currencies" have emerged. However, he cautioned, "We remain cautious on positioning given high skepticism about the prospects for a lasting peace agreement."

Most major Asian currencies strengthened against the U.S. dollar. Rajeev de Mello, global macro portfolio manager at Gama Asset Management, commented, "Once tensions in the Middle East begin to ease, the dollar will resume its broader downward trend." He added, "As the situation moves closer to resolution, we will look to rebuild exposure to emerging market foreign exchange assets."