World shares are mixed and oil prices slip after Iran and US launch fresh attacks
HONG KONG (AP) — World shares were mixed and oil prices slipped on Thursday as conflict escalated in the Middle East, with Iran and the U.S. launching fresh attacks.
U.S. futures were little changed.
The United States launched more airstrikes on Iran, and Iran responded by firing at Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar, a day after U.S. President Donald Trump said their temporary ceasefire was “over.” The prospects for a lasting peace remained uncertain, with high-level talks seeking to salvage an interim agreement on ending the war still underway, according to a regional intelligence official involved in the mediation efforts who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the delicate behind-the-scenes negotiations.
In early European trading, Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.6% to 10,422.75. France's CAC 40 was up 0.3% to 8,280.05, while Germany's DAX traded 0.3% higher at 24,963.05.
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 reversed some of its losses from earlier in the week, gaining 1.4% to 67,743.85. Chip equipment maker Tokyo Electron jumped 5.5%, and artificial intelligence-focused investment holding firm SoftBank Group slipped 0.1%.
South Korea’s Kospi index zigzagged and ended 0.6% higher at 7,291.91 despite falling earlier in the day. Samsung Electronics was up 0.2% on Thursday, while memory chipmaker SK Hynix gained 5.3%.
The Shanghai Composite index traded 1.7% higher at 4,036.59, even as China’s producer price index rose 4.1% in June compared to a year earlier. That was higher than May’s 3.9%, as some economists attribute higher inflation to impacts from the Iran war.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng shed 0.7% to 24,030.18. Shares of Apple supplier Luxshare fell 1.6% in its trading debut in Hong Kong. Chinese AI company Zhipu, or Z.ai, surged 11.3% after it said it's raising about $4 billion through a share sale.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 shed 0.3% to 8,762.50.
Taiwan’s Taiex fell 0.8%, and India’s Sensex climbed 0.6%.
Oil prices fell back early Thursday, with Brent crude, the international standard, falling 0.4% to $77.69 per barrel. It briefly topped $80 on Wednesday. Before the Iran war began, Brent oil was trading at around $72 a barrel. Earlier optimism over an interim peace deal recently brought it back to prewar levels.
Benchmark U.S. crude also declined 0.4%, to $73.21 a barrel.
On Wednesday, Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 ended 0.3% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 1.1%. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite edged up 0.2%.
U.S. chipmaker Broadcom surged 4.8% after Apple committed to a multiyear partnership with the company.
In other dealings, the U.S. dollar fell to 162.43 Japanese yen from 162.59 yen. The euro was trading at $1.1427, up from $1.1417.
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