European markets opened lower and Asian stocks tumbled on Friday, with Japan’s Nikkei slumping 2.7% due to heavy selling of semiconductor-related shares and other market heavyweights. Tensions in the Middle East were weighing on sentiment, with futures for the S&P 500 down 0.6% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling 0.5%.
Oil prices initially surged after reports of Iran firing air defense batteries near Isfahan, but later gave up most of those gains. In European trading, Germany’s DAX lost 1.1%, the CAC 40 in Paris slipped 0.8%, and London's FTSE 100 was 0.6% lower.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 lost 2.7%, with semiconductor equipment supplier Lasertec being the largest loser at 8.4%. Other tech-related shares like Renesas, Tokyo Electron, and Sony Group Corp. also saw declines. Toyota Motor Corp was down 2.2%.
Japan's headline inflation rate slowed to 2.7% in March, with the core-core index moderating to 2.9%. The yen was slightly firmer against the U.S. dollar.
Markets are anticipating the Japanese central bank’s next move after raising its benchmark interest rate last month for the first time in 17 years. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dipped 1%, South Korea’s Kospi dropped 1.6%, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng declined 0.9%.
On Wall Street, the S&P 500 fell 0.2%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 0.1%, and the Nasdaq composite slipped 0.5%. Yields in the bond market have been rising, impacting stock performance.
Reports on the U.S. economy showed fewer workers applying for unemployment benefits, manufacturing growth in the mid-Atlantic region accelerating, and home sales holding up better than expected. Inflation has remained higher than forecast, leading Fed officials to consider maintaining high interest rates.
In oil trading, U.S. benchmark crude was trading higher at $82.22 per barrel, while Brent crude gained to $87.18 per barrel. The euro also rose slightly against the dollar.
