It's chaos as Emerging Markets' assets drop as Middle East conflict deepens

A man stands in front of an electronic quotation board displaying the Nikkei 225 stock prices on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in Tokyo on Monday, March 2, 2026. Asian stocks dropped on Monday on the back of fears for the global economy following US-Israeli attacks on Iran over the weekend. -- Photo by Kazuhiro NOGI / AFP

MANILA (Reuters) - Emerging market stocks, bonds and currencies declined on Monday after US and Israeli strikes on Iran and Tehran's retaliation threatened to spill into a wider Middle East conflict, driving oil prices sharply higher and sparking a dash into havens such as gold and the US dollar.

The MSCI index of emerging market equities dropped 1.6%, its steepest decline in a month.