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(Bloomberg) — Asian equities were set to fall as tensions escalated in the Middle East after US forces struck Iran, while technology stocks remained under pressure on Wall Street. Crude oil climbed.
Equity-index futures for Japan, Hong Kong and South Korea all pointed lower as US forces hit Iran after an American helicopter was downed. Contracts for Wall Street benchmarks declined 0.3% after stocks swung sharply on Tuesday. The Nasdaq 100 Index fell 1.1% as investors continued rotating out of tech shares that have driven much of this year’s rally.
West Texas Intermediate crude rose 1% to $89 a barrel after the latest round of attacks. The US launched “self-defense strikes” against Iran hours after President Donald Trump blamed Tehran for downing an American military helicopter near Oman, escalating tensions and threatening a fragile ceasefire as well as efforts to secure a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
The dollar strengthened against almost all its Group-of-10 peers. Treasury futures held steady ahead of the May US inflation report and a sale of 10-year notes.
