Global Markets Plummet Amid Tech Selloff as OIL Prices Crash, Threatening Indian Market Rally

Global Markets Plummet Amid Tech Selloff as OIL Prices Crash, Threatening Indian Market Rally​

GIFT Nifty ended lower on Friday, reflecting a sustained weak risk environment in global markets. Despite paring losses during the morning trade, the indicator settled at 24,071, down 44 points or 0.18 percent from Thursday's close. The performance underscored a broader selloff that swept through Asian equity markets.

Asia Experiences Steep Selloff as Technology Stocks Face Renewed Pressure​

Asian equities faced significant pressure after technology stocks came under intensified selling. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell about 3 percent, marking its biggest one-day decline in months after hitting a recent record high. Major Asian economies saw sharp corrections across their indices. South Korea's Kospi plunged as much as 9 percent during the session and subsequently closed down 6.2 percent after triggering a circuit breaker for the second time this week.

Wall Street Futures Mirror Global Tech Weakness​

The weakness continued through to US futures trading on Friday. Nasdaq 100 futures were down about 1.2 percent, while S&P 500 futures fell around 0.5 percent. The Dow futures also slipped marginally, being down 0.1 percent. This trend followed a mixed overnight session on Wall Street where the Nasdaq Composite registered a 0.46 percent decline.

Big Tech and Chip Stocks Under Heavy Scrutiny​

Chip stocks led the declines once again after their sharp rally seen earlier in the week. Micron Technology saw its stock fall nearly 5 percent in premarket trading, following a prior session where it had surged almost 16 percent. Intel and Advanced Micro Devices each declined more than 3 percent, while Nvidia was down about 1.4 percent.

The sector faces investor concerns that aggressive capital expenditure by hyperscale cloud companies may take longer than anticipated to translate into profits. This skepticism persisted even as demand for AI chips and memory remained robust. Market focus also centered on Apple after a 6 percent slide, which followed its decision to raise prices on several products due to soaring memory and storage chip costs.

Crude Oil Plummets, Erasing Geopolitical Premium​

Crude oil prices extended their downward trend, heading toward their steepest weekly losses since the Middle East conflict began. Brent crude futures fell more than 3 percent to around $72.7 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate slipped below $70. Both benchmarks were tracking for weekly declines of approximately 10 percent.

The severe correction in oil prices is attributed to easing supply concerns following the resumption of tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. This sharp move has effectively erased the geopolitical risk premium that had been built up during the Iran conflict, which is expected to ease inflationary pressures and reduce import costs for oil-importing economies.