Global stock markets crashed on Thursday,August 3, driven by a tumble in tech shares as investors locked in recent gains after Wall Street’s Dow Jones Industrial Average broke the 22,000 barrier for the first time in its 121-year history.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.7 per cent, with South Korea’s tech-heavy Kospi index slumping 1.7 per cent to its lowest level in over three weeks. Seoul shares took an additional hit from President Moon Jae-in’s new tax plan.
Japan’s blue-chip Nikkei stock index closed down 0.3 per cent.European stock markets opened broadly lower, Germany’s DAX slipping 0.6 per cent and France’s CAC 0.4 per cent lower. Britain’s FTSE was down 0.2 per cent.
“We haven’t seen a major correction in tech shares so far this year so they may be hitting a speed bump,” said Nobuhiko Kuramochi, chief strategist at Mizuho Securities.
In New York overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average topped the 22,000 mark for the first time on the strength in Apple shares following its earnings.
But as the positive impact faded, investors were encouraged to take profits.Samsung Electronics, which last Friday posted its biggest daily fall since October, slid 2.5 percent, giving up the gains made so far this week. SK Hynix dropped more than 3 per cent.
Technology stocks in Europe slipped 0.3 per cent.
“I don’t see too much in the way of downside for European stocks because economic data is strong – take a look at the Italian data today,” said Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets.
Data on Thursday showed Italy’s service sector posted its fastest growth for a decade in July, boosting prospects for economic output in the euro zone’s third-largest economy.
In currency markets, the dollar inched away from a 15-month low versus a basket of currencies, but was still looking wobbly due to doubts about whether there will be another
