Global Markets:
- Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei down 2.14%, Shanghai Composite down 0.29%, Hang Seng down 1.05% ASX down 1.14%
- Commodities : Gold at $2405.5 (0.36%), Silver at $28.57 (0.62%), Brent Oil at $87.93 (0.98%), WTI Oil at $83.67 (1.14%)
- Rates : US 10-year yield at 4.58, UK 10-year yield at 4.27, Germany 10-year yield at 2.458
News & Data:
- (USD) Natural Gas Storage 50B vs 54B expected
Markets Update:
Market losses rippled across Asia on Friday, spearheaded by Taiwan’s Weighted Index plunging 3.81% to its lowest in over a month at 19,527.12. This decline was fueled by escalating tensions in the Middle East, prompting sell-offs in major regional markets.
Reports of Israel’s limited strike in Iran intensified the downturn, triggering a sell-off in stocks and risk assets, while safe-haven assets like gold surged. The Japanese yen strengthened, contrasting sharply with bitcoin’s significant drop.
Oil prices surged over 3%, with Brent crude futures briefly topping $90 a barrel before settling just above $89. Meanwhile, U.S. stock futures dipped over 1% before a slight recovery.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 2.14%, closing at 37,068.35, while the broader Topix index declined 1.91% to 2,626.32, marking a weekly drop of 3.65%. Japan’s March inflation data showed a headline rate of 2.7%, with the core inflation rate remaining at 2.6%.
South Korea’s Kospi index closed 1.63% lower at 2,591.86, with the Kosdaq falling 1.61% to 841.91. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index lost 1.14%, marking its sixth decline in seven days. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index dropped 1.05%, while the mainland Chinese CSI 300 slipped 0.77%. On Wall Street, the S&P 500 recorded its fifth consecutive day of losses, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.52%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added a marginal 0.06%, closing just above its 2024 flatline.
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