The Japan Times - Global stocks slump again as Trump's tariffs hit confidence

Gold held firm after hitting a new record Thursday. Oil prices picked up slightly amid simmering tensions in the crude-heavy Middle East, where Israel threatened to annex part of the Gaza Strip and Sudan's army retook control of the presidential palace.

US stocks slumped on opening but mitigated those losses by the early afternoon with the NASDAQ falling 0.1 percent, the Dow dropping by 0.2 percent and the S&P losing 0.3 percent.

At the close of trading, major European indices likewise had been through a tough day following some heavy falls in Asia.

London and Frankfurt lost 0.5 percent with Paris faring slightly worse.

"Overall, stocks are sliding because of a lack of confidence," said Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB trading group.

"There is a confidence deficit around the world, which has been triggered by the unorthodox economic policies of Donald Trump."

One of the worst-hit markets was the Istanbul stock exchange which lost 7.8 percent two days after an 8.7 percent hit provoked by street protests that erupted after the arrest of Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu -- President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's main political opponent.

Stock markets across the globe had already retreated on Thursday after the Federal Reserve painted a gloomier picture for the US economy in the near future, even if Federal Reserve boss Jerome Powell played down the impact of tariffs.

"While all the attention is on tariffs, another major negative supply shock is hitting the US economy: slowing immigration," said Holger Schmieding, chief economist at Berenberg Bank.

"The US labour market depends heavily on immigrants, who have accounted for almost the entire rise in the labour force since the pandemic."

The Bank of England and Bank of Japan this week have warned about economic uncertainty fuelled by Trump.

Shares in Hong Kong sank for a second day running after a blistering start to the year.

Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD dived more than eight percent following a report that the European Commission was conducting a foreign subsidy investigation into its plant in Hungary.

British Airways-owner IAG retreated 2.8 percent after the airline warned that the temporary closure of Heathrow airport, its main hub, would significantly affect operations.

Europe's busiest airport shut down early on Friday after a fire at a nearby substation supplying power to the sprawling facility west of London.

"This will clearly have a significant impact on our operation and our customers and we're working as quickly as possible to update them on their travel options for the next 24 hours and beyond," British Airways said in a statement.

Nike slid 5.3 percent on Friday after the athletic footwear and apparel giant reported falling quarterly revenue.

Unease about the outlook continues to push gold prices higher as investors seek a safe haven from the volatility.

The precious metal was sitting just below the record $3,057.49 per ounce (28.35 grammes) touched on Thursday.

"While much ink has been spilled linking the latest leg-up in the price over the last month to the US growth scare, it is notable that gold has historically had a mixed record around US recessions," said Kieran Tompkins, senior climate and commodities economist at Capital Economics.

- Key figures around 1630 GMT -

New York - Dow: DOWN 0.2 percent at 41,860.69 points

New York - S&P: DOWN 0.3 percent 5,646.00

New York - Nasdaq: DOWN 0.1 percent at 17,676.32

London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.5 percent at 8,655.47 points (close)

Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.6 percent at 8,049.18 (close)

Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 0.5 percent at 22,891.38 (close)

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.2 percent at 37,677.06 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 2.2 percent at 23,689.72 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 1.3 percent at 3,364.83 (close)

Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0825 from $1.0856 on Thursday

Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2918 from $1.2967

Dollar/yen: UP at 149.02 yen from 148.76 yen

Euro/pound: UP at 83.79 pence from 83.72 pence

West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.2 percent at $68.24 per barrel

Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.1 percent at $72.07 per barrel

T.Sasaki--JT