Gold prices sticky over $2k as stocks worldwide plummet on Wall Street crumble
ALBAWABA – Stocks worldwide mostly fell on Thursday as Wall Street stocks plummeted and gold prices rose after an interday fall on Wednesday, back to the levels achieved earlier in the day.
All three Wall Street stock indexes fell more than 1 percent by Thursday morning.
The S&P 500 was down 1.47 percent, at 4,698.35, by 1147 Amman Time, according to Bloomberg. The Nasdaq and Dow Jones were both down 1.5 percent and 1.27 percent, at 14,777.94 and 37,082.00, respectively.
Even the small-cap United States (US) stock market index, Russel 2000, was down 1.89 percent, indicating a pan-Wall Street slump that threatens to erase most of the gains made in the recent rallies.
The Dow Jones has fallen below all of the five straight records it hit this week, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Meanwhile, gold prices fell from Wedneday's levels, having broken over $2,040 per ounce, but made a quick comeback on Thursday, at $2,036.56 per ounce, up more than $4, or 0.21 percent.
Stocks worldwide track Wall Street fall as safe havens, gold prices push higher
Asian markets tracked Wall Street losses in the morning but fared better in the afternoon, AFP reported.
Stocks worldwide down on Wall Street fall as gold prices rise - Shutterstock
Tokyo, Sydney, Seoul, Taipei, Jakarta and Manila retreated but Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore, Mumbai, Bangkok and Wellington all eked out some gains.
Meanwhile, London, Frankfurt and Paris all opened lower, though London’s FTSE made a comeback later in the day, jumping 1.02 percent to 7,715.68 around midday (GMT+3), according to Reuters. Europe’s Stoxx was stable at 477.94.
Futures on Europe’s stock benchmark declined as much as 0.8 percent, Bloomberg reported, after the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 both dropped 1.5 percent Wednesday.
The broader MSCI All Country World Index of shares slipped for a second day after it had powered ahead for the previous nine sessions.
Meanwhile, Treasuries edged lower, while most currencies traded in narrow ranges with volatility easing as the year-end holiday season approaches, the New York-based news agency reported.
Corporate losses across Pacific drag on stocks worldwide, gold prices rebound
In corporate news, AFP reported Toyota falling four percent in Tokyo – having dropped more than five percent at one point – after subsidiary Daihatsu said Wednesday it will suspend shipments of all car models in Japan and abroad following news it had rigged safety tests.
The news got worse for the world's biggest carmaker later in the day when it said it was recalling around a million Toyota and Lexus vehicles in the US, citing concerns about their airbag systems.
Japanese stocks were among the biggest losers in the Asia-Pacific region, led by a selloff in index heavyweight Toyota Motor Corp, Bloomberg reported.
Bitcoin rose, extending Wednesday’s gains as the Securities and Exchange Commission nears a January 10 deadline to reject or approve ETFs. The token rose as high as $44,294 on Wednesday.
Fall on Wall Street pulls stocks worldwide down as gold prices rise
Notably, on Wall Street, the S&P 500 is now more than 2.0 percent below its record closing high.
Stocks worldwide down on Wall Street fall as gold prices rise - Shutterstock
All 11 major sectors in the S&P 500 closed in the red, with consumer staples suffering the steepest percentage decline after packaged food company General Mills cut its sales forecast.
Alphabet gained 1.2 percent after the company announced it was restructuring Google's ad sales unit.
Management consulting firm Aon tumbled 6.0 percent following its announcement that it would buy privately held insurance broker NFP in a $13.4 billion deal.
Declines outnumbered advances on the NYSE by a 2.64-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 2.26-to-1 ratio favored decliners, according to Reuters.
The equities rally, which had been driven by falling interest rates stalled even after US economic data that beat expectations initially drove all major indexes to new highs. A far steeper-than-expected decline in UK inflation also took markets by surprise, also bolstering markets.
Stocks worldwide: Markets summary by AFP and Bloomberg
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.6 percent at 33,140.47 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: FLAT at 16,621.13 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.6 percent at 2,918.71 (close)
London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.3 percent at 7,690.65
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 143.24 yen from 143.63 yen on Wednesday
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0948 from $1.0941
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2642 from $1.2633
Euro/pound: UP at 86.60 pence from 86.59 pence
New York - Dow: DOWN 1.3 percent at 37,082.00 (close)
S&P 500 futures rose 0.4 percent as of 3:46 p.m. Tokyo time.
The S&P 500 fell 1.5 percent
Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.4 percent
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was little changed
The Shanghai Composite rose 0.6 percent
Euro Stoxx 50 futures fell 0.6 percent
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.1 percent
The euro was little changed at $1.0944
The Japanese yen rose 0.3 percent to 143.16 per dollar
The offshore yuan was little changed at 7.1478 per dollar
Bitcoin rose 0.4 percent to $43,637.08
Ether rose 1.1 percent to $2,204.22
The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced four basis points to 3.88 percent
Australia’s 10-year yield declined three basis points to 4.02 percent
