Stocks in Asia mostly fell on Friday despite President Trump’s decision to back away from an imminent deadline to begin attacking Iran’s power grid. The price of oil, after jumping to its highest level this week, pulled back slightly.
On Thursday, after the S&P 500 had its biggest daily decline since January, Mr. Trump announced that he would extend the deadline by 10 days. He has claimed in recent days that he was making progress to end the Middle East war, which has choked critical supplies of energy.
The S&P 500 is on course for its fifth straight week of losses for the first time in four years. The war also continues to pressure bond yields, raising concerns over housing affordability and inflation generally.
Stocks in Asia fall.
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Stocks in Asia, where countries import vast quantities of oil and gas, fell on Thursday. Stocks in South Korea, which were down 2.5 percent, and Taiwan, 1.5 percent lower, were the worst performers. The Nikkei 225 in Japan was down about 1 percent. Stocks in Hong Kong and China were up slightly.
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Futures on the S&P 500 pointed to a 0.25 percent increase when stocks resume trading in the United States.
Oil slinks lower.
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The price of Brent crude, the global benchmark for oil, was about $107 on Friday. It jumped roughly 5.7 percent, to $108.01, on Thursday.
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West Texas Intermediate crude, the U.S. benchmark, was around $94 a barrel. On Thursday, it settled at $94.48.
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Investors and analysts have been focused on the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway between Iran and Oman that is a vital trading route for oil and natural gas that normally carries as much as one-fifth of the world’s oil supply. Shipping traffic exiting the Persian Gulf through the strait has been effectively halted since the war began on Feb. 28, leading to a spike in energy prices and concerns about lasting damage from the war.
Gasoline prices stayed flat.
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U.S. gas prices ticked down less than a penny on Thursday to remain around a national average of $3.98 a gallon, according to the AAA motor club. It was the first day the price did not increase since the war began, leaving the cost for drivers up 34 percent in that period.
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Diesel prices have increased even more quickly, rising to $5.38, up 43 percent since the start of the war.
The post Stocks Sink and Oil Dips After Trump Delays Threat to Bomb Iran appeared first on New York Times.
