Global Bourses Slip Amid Heightened Geopolitical Uncertainty
Shares in Europe and Asia were mostly lower as Wall St recorded best month since 2023
Global Bourses Slip Amid Heightened Geopolitical Uncertainty
Hong Kong: Global shares sank on Monday and oil prices jumped as trade tensions and the Russian-Ukraine conflict ratcheted up geopolitical uncertainty. The future for the S&P 500 lost 0.5 per cent while that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gave up 0.4 per cent.
Germany’s DAX retreated 0.4 per cent to 23,891.11 and the CAC 40 in Paris declined 0.5 per cent to 7,712.40. British FTSE 100 gained 1 per cent to 8,778.84. In Asia, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng initially plunged more than 2 per cent as Beijing and Washington traded harsh words over trade.
US President Donald Trump’s announcement that he will double tariffs on steel and aluminum to 50 per cent layered on still more worries for investors. But the Hang Seng closed just 0.6 per cent lower, at 23,157.97. Markets in mainland China were closed for a holiday.
China blasted the US for issuing AI chip export control guidelines, stopping the sale of chip design software to China, and planning to revoke Chinese student visas. A report over the weekend that China’s factory activity contracted in May, although the decline slowed from April as the country reached a deal with the US to slash President Donald Trump’s sky-high tariffs, further undermined market sentiment.
Oil prices rallied after OPEC+ decided on a modest increase in output beginning in July. It was the third monthly increase in a row. US benchmark crude oil gained $2.08 to $62.87 per barrel, while Brent crude, the international standard, was up $1.75 at $64.53 per barrel.
Moscow pounded Ukraine with missiles and drones just hours before a new round of direct peace talks in Istanbul and a Ukrainian drone attack destroyed more than 40 Russian planes deep in Russia’s territory, Ukraine’s Security Service said on Sunday. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 0.6 per cent to 23,157.97 as China and the US accused each other of breaching their tariff agreement reached in Geneva last month. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 lost 1.3 per cent to 37,470.67, while the Kospi in Seoul added 0.1 per cent to 2,698.97. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 retreated 0.2 per cent to 8,414.10. India’s Sensex lost 0.4 per cent while the Taiex in Taiwan fell 1.6 per cent.
