Stock markets in Asia fell sharply on Monday (Mar 9) after oil prices soared above US$100 per barrel threshold for the first time in almost four years, prompting governments to mull responses to reduce the impact on their economies. They closed lower, with European and US shares also dropping on opening.

US President Donald Trump, however, dismissed the spike as a "small price to pay" to eliminate Iran's nuclear threat, reiterating his insistence that the rise is temporary.

With the war now firmly into its second week, Iran moved to consolidate power, naming Mojtaba Khamenei as the country’s new supreme leader following the death of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in the opening days of the conflict.

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