Hong Kong stocks close higher

Hong Kong's stock market ended higher Tuesday, with the benchmark Hang Seng Index up 0.57 percent to close at 23,525.97 points.

The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index gained 0.47 percent to 7,943.10 points, and the Hang Seng Tech Index climbed 0.74 percent to 3,867.73 points.

Iran's parliament speaker declared Tuesday that the country stands at its highest level of military readiness, warning the United States that another "strategic mistake" would plunge the two sides into an entirely new and far more perilous battlefield.

Speaking before an open parliamentary session in Tehran, Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said regional countries should recognize that Iran is ready for battle with its "finger on the trigger," adding that the "ball is in Washington's court" to prevent war.

Ghalibaf warned that if the U.S. commits another strategic mistake, it would face a new battlefield and find itself in an even more difficult position.

The speaker also revealed that Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has formulated a military strategy to counter any potential enemy attack. On that basis, Ghalibaf said, Iran would deliver an "unpredictable military and strategic response" to any miscalculation by its adversaries and "completely shatter the miscalculations of the U.S. and Israel".

The warning came amid heightened tensions in the region following reported U.S. military strikes on Iran's strategic Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday.

Separately, Axios reported Saturday that U.S. President Donald Trump said he could be more inclined to order a large-scale military operation against Iran should Republicans suffer a devastating defeat in the midterm elections. Meanwhile, Washington's allies in the region are reportedly pushing hard to de-escalate, worried about how Iran might retaliate.