Asia-Pacific markets opened lower on Thursday, with South Korea’s Kospi leading losses.
The Kospi was down 4.1% in early trading. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 2.3% and Australia’s benchmark S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.97%.
Oracle shares fell more than 11% in extended trading after the software giant announced plans to raise an additional $20 billion in equity and debt to pay for building out its artificial intelligence. The drop weighed on S&P 500 futures and the iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF ( IGV ), heralding potential losses in the technology sector in the coming session.
US Central Command forces launched more “self-defense strikes” against Iran on Wednesday evening, according to a post by Centcom on social media platform X. The strikes were ordered by President Donald Trump, according to the post, SEEbiz reports. West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose nearly 3% to trade around $92 a barrel.
Stocks fell in regular trading on Wednesday, thanks to another decline in the chip sector and rising tensions with Iran. The Dow fell by 953.33 points, or 1.87%, while the S&P 500 fell by 1.62%. The technology-oriented Nasdaq Composite lost 1.98%.
