Bloodbath In Asia And Europe, Japan's Index Crashes 13%; Gold Near Record Highs - Global Markets Update While US Slept
Author: Akanksha Bakshi | August 05, 2024 06:44am
On Friday, August 2, the U.S. stock markets closed lower, with the Nasdaq Composite entering correction territory. A disappointing jobs report fueled recession fears.
Investors reacted negatively, signaling a shift in sentiment where bad economic news is viewed as a genuine concern rather than a potential trigger for Federal Reserve easing.
In economic data, the Labor Department reported a gain of 114,000 jobs last month, falling short of the 175,000 forecast and the 200,000 needed to match population growth.
The unemployment rate rose to 4.3%, near a three-year high, heightening concerns about a rapidly slowing economy.
Only consumer staples, utilities, and real estate posted gains among the 11 major S&P 500 sectors. Consumer discretionary led declines, with Amazon seeing its largest two-day drop since June 2022.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 1.51% and closed at 39,737.26. The S&P 500 declined 1.84%, ending the day at 5,346.56, and the Nasdaq Composite slid 2.43%, finishing the session at 16,776.16.
Asia Markets Today
- On Monday, Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed drastically lower by 13.47%, ending the session at 31,078.00, led by losses in the Finance & Investment, Banking, and Shipbuilding sectors.
- Japanese stocks plunged to the biggest drop since 1987 amid global market turmoil, economic concerns, and yen strength. The Nikkei entered bear market territory, falling 27% from its July peak, erasing 113 trillion yen ($792 billion). Factors included dismal jobs data, recession fears, and massive deleveraging of yen-funded investments. Japan’s banking stocks led the rout.
- Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 declined 3.70%, ending the day at 7,649.60, led by losses in the IT, Financials, and A-REITs sectors.
- India’s Nifty 50 slid 2.70% to 24,049.95, and Nifty 500 was down 3.13%, closing at 22,531.90.
- China’s Shanghai Composite was down 1.54%, ending the session at 2,860.70, and the Shenzhen CSI declined 1.21%, closing at 3,343.32.
- Hong Kong’s Hang Seng ended the session lower by 1.46% at 16,698.36.
Eurozone at 06:15 AM ET
- The European STOXX 50 index declined 2.44%.
- Germany’s DAX fell 2.30%.
- France’s CAC was down 2.11%.
- U.K.’s FTSE 100 traded lower by 2.17%.
- European stocks opened sharply lower on Monday amid fears of a U.S. recession. Germany’s DAX, France’s CAC 40, and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 all declined. This followed a significant drop in Japan’s Nikkei, driven by weak U.S. payroll data and concerns over prolonged high interest rates.
Commodities at 06:15 AM ET
- Crude Oil WTI was trading lower by 1.97% at $72.09/bbl, and Brent was down 1.79% at $75.45 bbl.
- Oil futures fell as fears of a U.S. recession outweighed Middle East supply concerns. Weak U.S. jobs data and declining Chinese diesel consumption pressured prices despite geopolitical tensions and rising OPEC oil output.
- Natural Gas declined 2.69% to $1.914.
- Gold was trading lower by 0.27% at $2,463.40, Silver fell 2.71% to $27.622, and Copper slid 2.05% to $4.0187.
- Gold prices slightly retreated but remained near record highs due to increased safe-haven demand amid economic concerns. A weaker dollar and disappointing U.S. economic data fueled this demand, impacting equities and other markets.
US Futures at 06:15 AM ET
Dow futures were down 1.63%, S&P 500 futures fell 2.66%, and Nasdaq 100 Futures declined 4.14%.
Forex at 06:15 AM ET
The U.S. Dollar Index declined 0.50% to 102.69%, USD/JPY was down 3.05% at 142.07, and USD/AUD gained 1.02% to 1.5511.
Photo by Pavel Bobrovskiy via Shutterstock
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