Asia stocks, dollar extend slide as U.S., North Korea tensions intensify
Asia stocks, dollar extend slide as U.S., North Korea tensions intensify
Asian stocks slumped on Friday as tensions ramped up between the U.S. and North Korea, sending investors into less risky assets such as gold, the yen and U.S. government bonds.
South Korea`s KOSPI fell 1.3 percent in early trade, taking its losses this week to 2.8 percent.
The Korean won krw
MSCI`s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dropped 0.5 percent in its third session of declines, with Australia down 1.4 percent. Japanese markets were closed for a holiday.
Overnight, Wall Street closed sharply lower after Trump, with fiery rhetoric, warned Pyongyang against attacking Guam or U.S. allies after it disclosed plans to fire missiles over Japan to land near the U.S. Pacific territory.
Trump took specific aim at North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, saying, he had "disrespected our country greatly," and would not be "getting away with it."
The MSCI World index dropped 1.1 percent overnight in its third straight day of declines and its biggest one-day slide since May 17, as U.S. President Donald Trump stepped up his rhetoric against North Korea.
U.S. stock futures
"The latest threats over North Korea have finally escalated to the point where market has been obliged to react," Ric Spooner, chief market analyst at CMC Markets, wrote in a note.
"U.S. markets had previously been becalmed amidst the Goldilocks scenario of strong profit growth, low interest rates and full valuations. Difficult to assess political risk is now intruding on this scenario."
The dollar extended losses against the yen to hit a new two-month low. It was down 0.1 percent at 109.07 yen jpy
Japan is the world`s biggest creditor country and there is an assumption that investors there will repatriate funds in a crisis.
Weakness in U.S. Treasury yields may also be supporting the yen, some analysts said.
U.S. Treasury yields us10yt
The dollar eased slightly against a basket of major currencies .
Gold prices xau
U.S. crude oil crude futures clc1
(This article has not been edited by Zeebiz editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)
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