Global stocks fell as Apple's price hikes rattled tech shares, with European stocks down nearly 1% and Wall Street futures pointing to falls of 0.5% to 1.1%. The regional weakness tracked a softer lead from Wall Street, where all three indices were trading higher in choppy trading as gains in healthcare and consumer discretionary stocks offset losses in industrials, technology and energy. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq were on track for a weekly loss while the Dow was headed for a weekly gain, with chip stocks down 4.5% and set to shed 7% for the week, the largest weekly decline since March. Apple said on Thursday it could no longer shield customers from soaring memory and storage chip costs, and while its shares were steadier in premarket trading on Friday, that came after Thursday's 6% fall. A media report that OpenAI was considering delaying its IPO until next year also dampened the stock market mood.
Steep declines in Asia were led by tech stocks, with MSCI's index of Asian stocks outside Japan down 3%. South Korea's KOSPI was down as much as 9% at one point, triggering a circuit breaker, while Japan's Nikkei 225 slumped 3.9%, shedding over 2,800 points, as investors unwound positions after Thursday's AI-driven rally. The retreat came despite Micron's blockbuster results earlier this week, with sentiment souring after Apple slumped more than 6% after warning of rising memory and storage costs by increasing prices across Macs and iPads. Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 2%, China's Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 slid 2.6% and the Shanghai Composite fell 1.7%, while the broader MSCI Asia ex-Japan Index lost nearly 2.8%.
Samsung Electronics Co Ltd and SK Hynix Inc fell over 6% each after local media reported both companies are preparing substantial long-term investment increases in semiconductor capacity, prompting investors to lock in gains following Thursday's surge. The pair ranked among the biggest drags on Asian benchmarks after their outsized rally a day earlier. Japan's SoftBank Corp plunged about 13% after reports that OpenAI may delay a potential initial public offering until 2027, postponing a key catalyst for the Japanese technology investor. Mark Hackett, chief market strategist, noted it's a combination of a needed and healthy period of consolidation following the historic run since March and a dramatic rotation from tech and everything else.
Japan's June Tokyo inflation data also underscored persistent price pressures, with core CPI holding at 1.6% year-on-year and the closely watched core-core measure accelerating to 1.1% from 0.7%, keeping expectations alive for further Bank of Japan policy normalization. Investors also continued to digest signs of easing Fed tightening expectations after Thursday's softer-than-expected U.S. PCE inflation reading. Thailand's SET Index rose 0.7%, making it one of the few gainers in the region, while Singapore's FTSE Straits Times Singapore fell 0.7% and Indonesia's Jakarta Stock Exchange Composite Index slipped 0.4%. Indian markets were closed for the Muharram holiday during this period of regional market volatility.
Oil set for big weekly losses as crude prices plunged by about 3% on Friday, on course for steep weekly losses, as more oil tankers exited the Strait of Hormuz, easing supply concerns. Brent crude futures fell $2.42, or 3.2% to $72.84 a barrel by 1323 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate lost $1.97, or 2.7% to $69.95. However, gold edged higher on Friday as the dollar weakened and expectations of US interest rate hikes eased slightly following inflation data. Spot gold was up 0.51% to $4,046.70 per ounce by 1339 GMT, with US gold futures for August delivery rising 0.35% to $4,061.40 per ounce. The US dollar eased from recent highs after the release of the Fed's preferred inflation gauge on Thursday.
As reported by CF Benchmarks, bitcoin has pulled back into the $50,000 to $60,000 zone, which Selby describes as historically where buyers have stepped in. He identified $55,000 as the support to watch below and $61,000 to $62,000 as the level bulls need to reclaim. Selby advised keeping position sizes sensible given the current market conditions. Bitcoin has now dropped below its 200-week moving average, signaling a bear market for bitcoin as more investors appear to hold bearish positions. Robert Mitchnick, BlackRock's head of digital assets, said booming interest in AI has driven capital away from bitcoin, noting it was a "tough stretch" for the cryptocurrency since its October peak as "the AI momentum is certainly suckling a lot of the oxygen out of the room." Volatility is par for the course in crypto investing, particularly as leverage tends to amplify market swings, though historical price action offers some reassurance that Bitcoin has always erased its losses and gone on to set new highs, though that recovery could take time given the current sticky inflation environment.
