Bloodbath In Asia And Europe, Japan's Index Crashes 13%; Gold Near Record Highs - Global Markets Update While US Slept

On Friday, August 2, the U.S. stock markets closed lower, with the Nasdaq Composite entering correction territory. A disappointing jobs report fueled recession fears.

Investors reacted negatively, signaling a shift in sentiment where bad economic news is viewed as a genuine concern rather than a potential trigger for Federal Reserve easing.

In economic data, the Labor Department reported a gain of 114,000 jobs last month, falling short of the 175,000 forecast and the 200,000 needed to match population growth.

The unemployment rate rose to 4.3%, near a three-year high, heightening concerns about a rapidly slowing economy.

Only consumer staples, utilities, and real estate posted gains among the 11 major S&P 500 sectors. Consumer discretionary led declines, with Amazon seeing its largest two-day drop since June 2022.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 1.51% and closed at 39,737.26. The S&P 500 declined 1.84%, ending the day at 5,346.56, and the Nasdaq Composite slid 2.43%, finishing the session at 16,776.16.

Asia Markets Today

• On Monday, Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed drastically lower by 13.47%, ending the session at 31,078.00, led by losses in the Finance & Investment, Banking, and Shipbuilding sectors.
• Japanese stocks plunged to the biggest drop since 1987 amid global market turmoil, economic concerns, and yen strength. The Nikkei entered bear market territory, falling 27% from its July peak, erasing 113 trillion yen ($792 billion). Factors included dismal jobs data, recession fears, and massive deleveraging of yen-funded investments. Japan’s banking stocks led the rout.
• Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 declined 3.70%, ending the day at 7,649.60, led by losses in the IT, Financials, and A-REITs sectors.
• India’s Nifty 50 slid 2.70% to 24,049.95, and Nifty 500 was down 3.13%, closing at 22,531.90.
• China’s Shanghai Composite was down 1.54%, ending the session at 2,860.70, and the Shenzhen CSI declined 1.21%, closing at 3,343.32.
• Hong Kong’s Hang Seng ended the session lower by 1.46% at 16,698.36.

Eurozone at 06:15 AM ET

• The European STOXX 50 index declined 2.44%.
• Germany’s DAX fell 2.30%.
• France’s CAC was down 2.11%.
• U.K.’s FTSE 100 traded lower by 2.17%.
• European stocks opened sharply lower on Monday amid fears of a U.S. recession. Germany’s DAX, France’s CAC 40, and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 all declined. This followed a significant drop in Japan’s Nikkei, driven by weak U.S. payroll data and concerns over prolonged high interest rates.

Commodities at 06:15 AM ET

• Crude Oil WTI was trading lower by 1.97% at $72.09/bbl, and Brent was down 1.79% at $75.45 bbl.
• Oil futures fell as fears of a U.S. recession outweighed Middle East supply concerns. Weak U.S. jobs data and declining Chinese diesel consumption pressured prices despite geopolitical tensions and rising OPEC oil output.
• Natural Gas declined 2.69% to $1.914.
• Gold was trading lower by 0.27% at $2,463.40, Silver fell 2.71% to $27.622, and Copper slid 2.05% to $4.0187.
• Gold prices slightly retreated but remained near record highs due to increased safe-haven demand amid economic concerns. A weaker dollar and disappointing U.S. economic data fueled this demand, impacting equities and other markets.

US Futures at 06:15 AM ET

Dow futures were down 1.63%, S&P 500 futures fell 2.66%, and Nasdaq 100 Futures declined 4.14%.

Forex at 06:15 AM ET

The U.S. Dollar Index declined 0.50% to 102.69%, USD/JPY was down 3.05% at 142.07, and USD/AUD gained 1.02% to 1.5511.

Photo by Pavel Bobrovskiy via Shutterstock