Global shares fell on Thursday as oil topped $105 amid fresh tanker attacks by Iran, which threaten to curtail a recent uptick in flows from the Middle East and adding to worries over rising inflation globally.
Risk assets took a hit, while a sell-off in bank stocks that started in Asia fed into other markets. Meanwhile, the bond market rout showed no sign of abating as US and French yields continued to rise.
DUBLIN
The Iseq index underperformed its peers, falling by more than 2 per cent. Ireland’s pillar banks were caught up in a global sell-off of lenders, with AIB, down by 3.6 per cent to €10.90, the worst performer on the index.
Bank of Ireland shed 2.5 per cent to close at €18.43. The Irish Times reported on Thursday that the lender has managed to contain losses in its US leveraged acquisition loan book through insurance deals with specialist investors.
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Ryanair fell by 2.5 per cent to €23.37 per share after Michael O’Leary warned that “insanely higher” jet fuel prices could last until 2028.
All of the big names on the index finished in red, including Kerry Group, down by 0.4 per cent, and Kingspan, which slid by 0.7 per cent.
LONDON
British shares dipped, with the benchmark FTSE 100 falling by 0.2 per cent and the mid-cap FTSE 250 shedding almost 0.5 per cent.
The big names in British banking faltered. Lloyds gave back almost 1.7 per cent amid renewed attacks on tankers in the Gulf. HSBC shed almost 2 per cent after the FT reported that the bank plans deep job cuts in its UK wealth business as part of a broader, AI-driven efficiency push.
Among individual stocks, Tesco surged by more than 5 per cent after the food retailer raised its profit forecast.
Asset management company Aberdeen rose 1.4 per cent after selling 52 million shares in Standard Life for about £436 million.
EUROPE
Europe’s main equity indices were dragged lower by falling bank stocks. The blue-chip Stoxx 50 was down by almost 1 per cent and the pan-European Stoxx 600 dipped by 0.7 per cent ata nearly four-month low.
European lenders have this week suffered their worst two-day slump since March amid concerns over France’s fiscal deficit and political gridlock.
Italy’s Intesa Sanpaolo shed almost 3 per cent as Spain’s BBVA and Santander fell by 1.8 per cent and 2.9 per cent, respectively.
France’s BNP Paribas fell by 2.4 per cent, while its compatriot, Société Générale, dipped 2.3 per cent.
Among individual stocks, Argenx tumbled by almost 16 per cent, making it the worst performer on the Stoxx 600, after the Netherlands-based biopharmaceutical company discontinued a trial.
Most sectors on the STOXX traded lower. Energy shares were a bright spot as oil prices climbed more than 3 per cent on persistent concerns about supply from the key Middle East producing region.
NEW YORK
US stocks fell as a surge in oil prices and treasury yields near multiyear highs stoked inflation worries before a crucial earnings season that is expected to test recent market gains.
Megacap growth stocks were broadly lower, with Amazon falling by around 1 per cent and Tesla down 1.4 per cent.
Chip-related companies also dropped after forecasts of record quarterly profit from memory-chip giant Samsung Electronics failed to lift sentiment, with its shares closing lower in South Korea.
Rival Micron Technology was down 1.8 per cent.
Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday that Broadcom is lining up $50 billion in financing for OpenAI, with Oracle also seeking an unspecified sum, spurring fears that large debt issuance by technology companies could intensify the competition for capital.
Broadcom and Oracle were down 1.4 per cent and 2.1 per cent, respectively, amid wider weakness in tech stocks. – Additional reporting: Bloomberg, Reuters
