On Friday (17 July, 9:16 AM, GMT+7, Bangkok time), major indices in the Asia Pacific continued to decline for a second consecutive session, weighed down by a pronounced drop in semiconductor shares. Notably, South Korea’s markets were closed on Friday due to a national holiday.
Investor sentiment toward tech companies has cooled, amid growing skepticism that the heavy spending on AI will deliver returns sufficient to match current high equity valuations.
Despite some relief from lower-than-expected U.S. inflation data reducing the likelihood of a near-term interest rate increase by the Federal Reserve, Asian equities remained under pressure. Persistent geopolitical concerns—particularly heightened conflict in the Middle East—have also contributed to market unease and sustained elevated oil prices.
Iran warned it would retaliate by striking critical areas should the U.S. move forward with potential attacks on Iranian infrastructure. This came after President Donald Trump indicated in a media interview that U.S. military action against Iran remained possible in the coming week if efforts to resolve disputes through diplomacy do not succeed.
Japan’s NIKKEI fell by 3.89% to 64,233.07, and Australia’s ASX 200 decreased by 0.84% to 8,766.00.
As for stocks in China, Shanghai’s SSEC lost 0.97% to 3,844.90. Shenzhen’s SZI slumped by 2.54% to 14,120.83, and Hong Kong’s HSI dropped by 0.94% to 24,772.56.
The U.S. stock markets edged down on Thursday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) slid by 0.20% to 52,552.97. NASDAQ plummeted by 1.47% to 25,881.94, and S&P 500 contracted by 0.51% to 7,533.77. VIX jumped by 6.76% to 16.73.
As for commodities, oil prices settled lower on Thursday amid heightened tensions in the Middle East and potential disruption of oil exports through the Red Sea. Brent crude declined 0.9%, or 72 cents, to finish at $84.23 per barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures also moved lower, closing at $78.95 a barrel, down 0.8%, or 65 cents.
This morning, Brent futures gained 92 cents, or 1.09%, to $85.15 per barrel, and the WTI futures added $1.00, or 1.27%, to $79.95 per barrel.
Meanwhile, gold futures dipped by 0.16% to $3,985.90 per Troy ounce.
