Japan's Nikkei hits record high as Asia markets rise amid Middle East concerns

Asia-Pacific markets opened higher Wednesday, with Japan's Nikkei 225 hitting a record high, as investors appeared to look past uncertainty over U.S.-Iran negotiations aimed at ending the Middle East conflict. Tensions have escalated between Washington and Tehran, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio saying on Tuesday that Iran has mined "large segments" of the Strait of Hormuz. "They're firing on commercial ships and they've mined large segments of Hormuz — international waters," Rubio told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. This marks his first appearance before Congress since the Iran war on Feb. 28. A White House official told CNBC that the Pentagon has destroyed numerous mines and over 40 minelaying vessels. The Strait of Hormuz is a critical waterway, particularly for the energy market globally — around 20% of the world's oil supplies passed through the strait before the war. Japan's Nikkei 225 gained 0.91%, while the Topix added 0.93%. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was 0.32% higher. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index futures last traded at 25,853, lower than the index's last close of 26,038.32. South Korea's markets were closed for a holiday. The West Texas Intermediate futures for June were 1.16% higher at $94.92 per barrel as of 7:45 p.m. ET. Brent crude futures for July last traded at $96 per barrel. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures were trading around the flatline, as were futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average During Tuesday's regular session, the broad-based S&P 500 rose 0.13% to end above 7,600 for the first time ever, while the Dow added 228.91 points, or 0.45%. The Nasdaq Composite eked out a gain of 0.03%. — CNBC's Spencer Kimball and Lisa Kailai Han contributed to this report.