World shares exhibited a mixed performance on Friday, following a record-setting session on Wall Street. Investors remained cautiously optimistic as they monitored potential developments in U.S.-Iran negotiations and the impending expiration of the ceasefire in the ongoing Iran conflict.
In Europe, early trading showed varied results. The FTSE 100 index in Britain experienced a slight decline, falling by 0.2% to 10,567.17. Conversely, France’s CAC 40 gained 0.4%, reaching 8,293.21, and Germany’s DAX increased by 0.6% to 24,308.82. On the Asian front, stocks were generally down. Japan’s Nikkei 225 dropped by 1.8% to 58,475.90 after having marked an all-time high the previous day. South Korea’s Kospi was down by 0.6% to 6,191.92, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 0.9% to 26,160.33. Notably, shares of Manycore Tech, a Chinese spatial design software company, surged by over 140% on its first trading day in Hong Kong, buoyed by the current boom in artificial intelligence. Meanwhile, the Shanghai Composite index edged down 0.1% to 4,051.43.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 posted a minor loss of 0.1%, while Taiwan’s Taiex fell by 0.9%. In contrast, India’s Sensex managed to gain 0.7%. The changing dynamics in geopolitical relations were underscored by U.S. President Donald Trump’s remarks suggesting a willingness to consider extending the two-week ceasefire in the Iran war. Iran’s U.N. envoy expressed a “cautiously optimistic” stance regarding ongoing negotiations with the U.S.
As the prospect of a ceasefire extension grew, oil prices suffered a decline after experiencing increases in previous sessions. Brent crude, the international standard, fell by 3.2% to $96.25 per barrel, having previously surged by approximately 40% since the conflict began in late February. Benchmark U.S. crude also saw a decrease of 3.6%, settling at $87.86 a barrel.
Concerns surrounding global energy supplies intensified due to the war, particularly with the Strait of Hormuz remaining largely inaccessible and the U.S. imposing a blockade on Iranian ports. The head of the International Energy Agency warned that Europe might only have about six weeks’ worth of jet fuel supplies left, raising alarms about possible flight cancellations soon.
On Wall Street, optimism prevailed as the benchmark S&P 500 closed 0.3% higher at 7,041.28, marking another record high just a day after surpassing its former peak from January. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed by 0.2% to reach 48,578.72, while the tech-focused Nasdaq composite saw an increase of 0.4%, closing at 24,102.70. Noteworthy performances included PepsiCo, which gained 2.3% following the release of better-than-expected quarterly results, and J.B. Hunt Transport Services, which surged by 6.3% on the back of strong performance metrics.
In other market activity, gold prices were slightly down, less than 0.1%, at $4,806.20 per ounce, while silver saw a modest gain of 0.8%, trading at $79.36 per ounce. The U.S. dollar experienced a slight depreciation, falling to 159.15 Japanese yen from the previous 159.17, with the euro trading at $1.1796, an increase from $1.1781.
