Asia’s Stock Open Clouded by Broadcom, Oil Slips: Markets Wrap

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June 4, 2026 - 01:28

6 minutes

(Bloomberg) — Asian stocks were poised for losses on Thursday as renewed clashes between the US and Iran added strain to a fragile ceasefire.Equity-index futures for Japan and Hong Kong signaled losses at the start, putting a regional benchmark on track to end a four-day rally that carried it to a record. After the close, Broadcom Inc. shares tumbled in post-market action as its outlook failed to impress investors.Contracts for the S&P 500 Index fell 0.5%, after the underlying gauge pulled back from a peak and snapped a nine-day winning streak. That came after the US and Iran exchanged fire overnight, drawing Kuwait and Bahrain into one of the most serious flare-ups since a ceasefire took effect in early April.In some relief for markets, American crude declined 0.8% to $95.23 a barrel and US bond futures inched higher after the US announced a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon. Elevated oil prices and signs of resilience in the US labor market sent Treasuries lower Wednesday, as traders increased bets that the Federal Reserve’s next move will be to raise interest rates.The moves followed days of rising tensions in the Middle East, including Israeli operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon, that risk derailing US-Iran talks and undermining a fragile ceasefire. While the AI-driven rally has propelled equities to record highs, a fresh wave of geopolitical risks is testing investors’ willingness to look past higher oil prices.“We are no longer watching a delicate ceasefire, instead what is occurring is more akin to a low-intensity conflict,” said Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG. “This simply leaves the vital issue of oil supplies unresolved, and the clock continues to tick down towards doomsday for oil inventories and the global economy.”Some investors also warned that the booming artificial-intelligence market is showing signs of a bubble that will eventually burst.“All great technology changes produce bubbles,” billionaire investor Ray Dalio, the founder of Bridgewater Associates, said in a Bloomberg Television interview Wednesday.Elsewhere, the dollar, the haven of choice during the Middle East conflict, gained the most in two weeks during the New York session. Non-interest-bearing gold fell 1.2% to $4,434 an ounce.In Asia, the yen hovered near the 160-per-dollar level after comments from Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda that make an interest rate hike this month sound likely but not certain.Attention also turned to the US labor market, where data showed companies added the most jobs since January 2025, suggesting hiring momentum remains intact despite higher energy costs. If confirmed by Friday’s payrolls report, the figures may reinforce expectations that the Fed is more likely to raise rates in the months ahead.Investors will get another read on the labor market on Thursday with weekly jobless claims, ahead of the government’s monthly employment report on Friday.Fed Bank of Dallas President Lorie Logan said policymakers may need to raise rates later this year to bring inflation back to target. Separately, New York Fed President John Williams told Yahoo Finance that the outlook for rates remains uncertain.“If incoming US data continue to surprise positively, investors may increasingly express a more hawkish Fed view through renewed dollar strength, particularly against lower- and zero-yielding currencies and commodities like the Japanese yen and gold,” said Fawad Razaqzada at Forex.com.While Ueda’s comments in Japan reinforced expectations for a rate hike on June 16, they were less explicit than remarks that preceded the BOJ’s previous two increases.Pressure on the yen has mounted as negotiations over a permanent US-Iran ceasefire show little sign of a breakthrough. The wide interest rate gap between the US and Japan is also weighing on the Japanese currency after the BOJ held rates steady in April.“The BOJ appears to be on track for a June hike,” said Yusuke Miyairi, a currency strategist at Nomura International Plc. “Since the BOJ’s June hike is much priced in, Ueda’s speech won’t change the trend of the dollar-yen pair.”Corporate Highlights:Broadcom Inc. shares fell in extended trading after the company delivered a disappointing forecast for artificial intelligence chip revenue. Alphabet Inc. upsized its equity raise to $84.75 billion from the $80 billion it announced just two days earlier in a bid to help fund growing artificial intelligence spending plans. Meta Platforms Inc. is selling businesses access to an AI agent for the first time, its latest effort to generate revenue to offset the company’s hefty investments. SpaceX is planning to offer shares at $135 apiece to raise $75 billion in its ⁠initial public offering, according to people familiar with the matter, as Elon Musk rejects another Wall Street convention by setting a fixed price ahead of the marketing phase of the deal. Some of the main moves in markets:StocksS&P 500 futures fell 0.5% as of 8:17 a.m. Tokyo time Hang Seng futures fell 0.7% S&P/ASX 200 futures fell 0.9% CurrenciesThe Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed The euro was little changed at $1.1605 The Japanese yen was little changed at 159.95 per dollar The offshore yuan was little changed at 6.7779 per dollar The Australian dollar was little changed at $0.7131 CryptocurrenciesBitcoin fell 0.7% to $64,461.21 Ether rose 2.3% to $1,819.45 BondsThe yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced five basis points to 4.49% Japan’s 10-year yield advanced seven basis points to 2.640% Australia’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to 4.93% CommoditiesWest Texas Intermediate crude fell 0.6% to $95.40 a barrel Spot gold rose 0.3% to $4,448.99 an ounce This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.©2026 Bloomberg L.P.