Tech tumble drags stocks worldwide amid anticipation of US inflation data
ALBAWABA – Stocks worldwide slipped on Wednesday, as tech shares dragged Asia stocks and markets elsewhere fell on anticipation of United States (US) inflation data.
Stocks in Europe and the US declined as traders and investors held their breath for the release of the US consumer price index later on today.
More so, US stock futures edged lower after a rout in technology companies Tuesday saw the Nasdaq 100 slide 1.1 percent, according to Bloomberg.
Apple, which unveiled the iPhone 15 and other products, also dropped 1.8 percent, Reuters reported, as Oracle shares tumbled more than 13 percent after the company forecasted current-quarter revenues below target.
Stocks worldwide respond differently to slips and surges - Shutterstock
The S&P 500 fell 0.6 percent overnight, the Nasdaq declined 1 percent while Dow Jones was mostly flat.
In Europe, Euro Stoxx 50 futures and German bund futures edged lower on Wednesday, with Euro Stoxx 50 futures falling 0.5 percent.
Meanwhile, in Asia, the benchmark equity gauge headed for the lowest close in almost a week, dragged down by tech stocks after Apple Inc. tumbled on Tuesday.
Stocks worldwide slide on tech tumble, inflation anticipation
Tokyo shares also fluctuated in a narrow range as investors mostly adjusted positions before US inflation data comes out, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index dropped 0.21 percent, or 69.85 points, to 32,706.52, while the broader Topix index slid 0.05 percent, or 1.27 points, to 2,378.64.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slipped 0.3 percent, according to Reuters.
Chipmaker Murata Manufacturing lost 1.39 percent to 8,080 yen, while parts producer Taiyo Yuden fell 1.49 percent to 4,235 yen, AFP reported.
High-tech investor SoftBank Group lost 1.63 percent to 6,631 yen, while Sony Group fell 1.35 percent to 12,445. Contrarily, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and Mizuho Financial Group rose 3.13 percent and 0.94 percent to 1,317 yen and to 2,624.5 yen, respectively.
Stocks worldwide slide ahead of US inflation data - AFP
Toyota and Honda shares also rose 1.90 percent and 0.44 percent, to 2,707.5 yen and 5,061 yen, respectively, according to AFP.
In the meantime, Chinese blue-chips dropped 0.7 percent on still-fragile sentiment about China’s economic outlook, whereas Hong Kong's Hang Seng index reversed earlier gains to be mostly flat.
The US Consumer Price Index (CPI) report, expected to come out today, should shed further light on the inflation outlook and provide some clarity about whether the Federal Reserve is done hiking rates.
While core CPI is seen cooling to 4.3 percent year-on-year in August, from 4.7 percent, rising energy costs are forecast to keep headline inflation elevated at 3.6 percent, according to Reuters. And the latest spike in oil prices to ten-month highs is unlikely to escape the Fed's attention.
