Pakistan, May 15 -- Wars once destroyed stock markets. Today, they energize them.

That may sound morally disturbing, but modern financial markets no longer react to conflict the way they did decades ago. In the past, wars primarily represented uncertainty, destruction, and economic slowdown. Investors rushed toward safety, business confidence collapsed, and economies braced for prolonged instability. In 2026, however, global conflict has increasingly become a tradable asset class.

The recent tensions involving Iran, the fragile ceasefire dynamics in the Middle East, continued geopolitical rivalry between the United States and China, Red Sea disruptions, sanctions, oil volatility, and military posturing across strategic waterways have on...