World stock markets exhibited mixed behavior on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average achieved another record, bolstered by certain AI-related stocks. However, others experienced losses. The S&P 500 futures rose 0.3%, while Dow futures decreased 0.2%.
U.S. markets remained closed Friday in observance of the Independence Day holiday. In Europe, the German DAX increased by 0.4% to 25,667.73. Conversely, the CAC 40 in Paris decreased slightly by 0.1%, settling at 8,471.19. In London, the FTSE 100 fell 0.4% to 10,613.55.
Asian markets displayed varied results. South Korea’s Kospi, recovering from a nearly 8% drop on Thursday, surged 5.8% to 8,088.34. Major chipmaker Samsung Electronics rose 8.2%, and SK Hynix advanced 10.9%.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 increased by 1.5%, reaching 69,744.07. Tokyo Electron, a prominent chipmaker, saw a 0.4% rise, while memory maker Kioxia jumped 9.2%. The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong gained 1.3% to 23,350.03, and China’s Shanghai Composite added 0.4% to 4,043.64.
Taiwan’s Taiex edged up by 0.1%, and the Sensex in India rose 0.4%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 1.4%, closing at 8,844.40. Analyst Stephen Innes from SPI Asset Management noted that Asian stocks recovered after some challenging tech-led days.
On Thursday, U.S. stocks saw mixed results. The Dow gained 1.1% to a record 52,900.07. The S&P 500 remained almost unchanged, edging up less than 0.1% to 7,483.24, though a majority of its stocks rose. The Nasdaq composite fell 0.8% to 25,382.67.
U.S. labor figures indicated employers added 57,000 jobs last month, falling short of the anticipated 100,000. This result, slower than May’s job growth, might reduce inflation pressure, possibly deterring frequent interest rate increases from the Federal Reserve.
Economists observed a drop in oil prices following recent hikes due to the conflict with Iran, which might contain inflation. Lower inflation could mean fewer rate hikes by the Federal Reserve, benefiting investors as borrowing becomes cheaper.
Stocks related to cryptocurrency performed well. Bitcoin’s price increased by roughly 2%, enhancing shares of Robinhood Markets by 3.8% and Coinbase Global by 3.9%. Bitcoin rose an additional 0.9% early Friday.
AI-driven chip stocks felt pressure due to concerns about possibly inflated valuations. Micron Technology’s shares fell 5.5% after a 10.6% drop the previous day. Nvidia saw a 1.4% decline, while Lam Research dropped 10.2%. Nvidia’s substantial market valuation affects the S&P 500 significantly.
In commodities, Brent crude slipped slightly below 0.1% to $71.76 a barrel. U.S. benchmark crude declined by 0.2% to $68.48 a barrel. The dollar gained against the yen, moving to 161.14 from 161.11, and the euro rose against the dollar to $1.1451 from $1.1431.