Taiwan’s Weighted Index led losses in Asia on Friday, declining by 3.81% and closing at 19,527.12, marking its lowest level in over a month. This downward trend coincided with a broader decline in major markets across the region, prompted by escalating tensions in the Middle East.
Amid reports of a limited strike by Israel in Iran, Asian equities experienced declines, causing stocks and risk assets to tumble while safe havens like gold surged.
The precious metal reached an all-time high, accompanied by a strengthening Japanese yen, while bitcoin faced a significant plunge.
Oil prices also saw a sharp increase, rising by over 3%, with global benchmark Brent crude futures briefly crossing the $90 per barrel mark before settling just above $88. Meanwhile, U.S. stock futures dropped by more than 1%, recovering slightly to approximately a 0.5% loss.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 fell by 2.66%, although it managed to pare earlier losses to end at 37,068.35, while the broader Topix index declined by 1.91% to 2,626.32. On a weekly basis, the Nikkei shed 3.65%.
Additionally, Japan released its March inflation data, showing a headline inflation rate of 2.7%, down from 2.8% in February, with the core inflation rate remaining at 2.6%.
South Korea’s Kospi closed 1.63% lower at 2,591.86, while the small-cap Kosdaq ended 1.61% lower at 841.91. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.98%, concluding at 7,567.3, marking its sixth losing session in seven days.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index declined by 0.95%, while the mainland Chinese CSI 300 slipped by 0.79%, closing at 3,541.66.
Overnight on Wall Street, the S&P 500 recorded five consecutive days of losses, its longest streak since October, with a 0.22% decline. The Nasdaq Composite dropped by 0.52%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.06%, closing slightly above its flatline for 2024.
