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London Shares Extend Losses as Oil Prices Surge

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London's FTSE 100 index dropped 1.31% on Wednesday's close as worsening conflict in the Middle East and fuel shortage concerns pushed Brent crude past $100 a barrel for the first time since July.

Following an Iranian ballistic missile attack targeting a US Navy warship, US Central Command confirmed that American forces retaliated by destroying five Iranian tankers. Iranian state television broadcast an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warning ordering tankers near Kuwaiti and Bahraini piers to evacuate immediately or face being targeted. Iranian forces also launched an overnight missile strike against an air base in Jordan.

Meanwhile, the UK government is readying primary legislation requiring technology platforms and app developers to enforce device- and app-level safeguards to block children from accessing and sharing explicit content. Secretary of State for the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Lisa Nandy noted that cross-departmental efforts with Apple and Google have yielded "meaningful" operating system-level protections against nude image sharing, but said initial commitments "do not meet the scale of this crisis."

In corporate news, Aberdeen Group (ABDN.L) appointed Torbjörn Magnusson as chair designate with immediate effect. Magnusson, former chair of If P&C Insurance, will succeed interim Chair Jonathan Asquith, subject to regulatory approval. The stock was up 0.40%.

HSBC (HSBA.L) declined 1.63% after digital media portal Finanz-Szene reported that the lender will shut down its HSBC Transaction Services business in Düsseldorf, Germany, resulting in the loss of 300 remaining jobs at the unit.

International Consolidated Airlines Group (IAG.L) fell 2.40% after its unit British Airways said it would cancel more than 190 flights following Tuesday's disruption caused by a technical issue with UK air traffic control. The airline said it is working to build a new schedule to operate as many flights as possible and resolve disruption for affected passengers.

Glenstone REIT's takeover proposal of 0.714 pound sterling per share for Alternative Income REIT (AIRE.L) became unconditional after it received acceptances from shareholders representing 22.78% of the London-listed real estate investment trust as of Tuesday. Alternative Income REIT decreased 2.61% in the closing trade.

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Asia Markets

Update: US Equity Indexes Drop as Houthi Strikes on Saudi Arabia's Energy Infrastructure Lift Crude Oil

(Updates with index/price moves, macroeconomic data and company/geopolitical news from the first paragraph.)US equity indexes declined as Iran-backed Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabian energy facilities sent crude oil higher, fueling inflation concerns.The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1.2% to 52,786.07, the Nasdaq Composite declined 0.3% to 26,421.41, and the S&P 500 retreated 0.6% to 7,673.52 on Tuesday. Energy and utilities were among the gainers. Healthcare and financials led decliners.Iran's Fars news agency reported an explosion in the southern Jask area of the Islamic Republic, after reports of earlier explosions heard on the country's Kharg Island, Al Jazeera, a Middle Eastern broadcaster, reported.This comes as Yemen's Tehran-backed Houthis attacked energy facilities and cities in US ally Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, wounding more than 70 people and underscoring the risk of the Iran conflict escalating into a wider regional war, Reuters reported.Saudi Arabia said the attacks stopped operations at several energy facilities in the kingdom's south, Bloomberg reported, while noting a pick-up in buying by China, the world's largest importer. The US struck three Iranian tankers on Saturday in response to attacks on two US Navy warships."As we ponder a prolonged conflict, our expectations increasingly shift to a slower recovery in Middle East oil supply," Peter Taylor, head of commodity strategy at Macquarie, said in a note. "In this environment, we would anticipate deficits persisting through [year-end 2026], with the market approximately balanced in 2027."The front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil contract jumped 2.8% to $94.05 per barrel, and global benchmark North Sea Brent advanced 2.2% to $99.11 per barrel.Most US Treasury yields rose, with the two-year up 1.7 basis points to 4.40%, amid concern that higher crude oil prices undermine the Federal Reserve's efforts to bring inflation back to its 2% target. The 10-year yield was steady at 4.79%.Gold futures dropped 1.7% to $4,403.4.In company news, Novartis (NVS) sank nearly 14% after the company said its phase 3 Harbor study evaluating delpacibart etedesiran in patients with myotonic dystrophy type 1 failed to meet its primary endpoint of video hand opening time. Amgen's (AMGN) experimental heart drug olpasiran may still show a meaningful reduction in major cardiovascular events, even after Novartis' competing drug failed in a large study, UBS Securities said in a note. Amgen shares slumped 10%, the worst performer on the S&P 500, the Nasdaq, and the Dow.Intel (INTC) is expected to raise personal computer central processing unit prices by another 10% in early October, Digitimes reported, citing supply chain sources. Intel shares jumped 9.1%, among the top gainers on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq.Palantir Technologies (PLTR) and Nebius Group (NBIS) agreed on a strategic partnership that will give Palantir commercial customers access to Nebius' artificial intelligence-native compute infrastructure and cloud platform, the companies said Tuesday. Nebius shares surged 7.7%, among the biggest Nasdaq outperformers.In economic news, the National Federation of Independent Business' monthly sentiment index fell to 98.7 in August from 99.8 in July, with declines in six of the 10 components, particularly the economic outlook."Uncertainty remains elevated among small business owners as they face a mixed set of challenges with weakened sales, supply chain disruptions, and inflation pressures," said NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg. "While expectations for the overall economy dimmed, Main Street owners remain largely positive about the health of their own businesses."

Dow JonesNasdaq CompositeS&P 500$AMGN$INTC$NBIS$NVS$PLTR
Asia Markets

Exchange-Traded Funds Mixed, US Equities Fall After Midday

Broad-market exchange-traded funds IWM and IVV eased. Actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) rose 0.2%.US equity indexes declined as a reported attack by Iran-backed militia group on Saudi Arabian energy sites pushed crude oil prices higher.EnergyIShares US Energy ETF (IYE) gained 0.3% and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) climbed 0.5%.TechnologyThe State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) gained 0.6%; iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) rose 0.2%, and iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) added 0.5%.The State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor (XSD) rose 1.7%, while iShares Semiconductor (SOXX) advanced 2%.FinancialThe State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) slipped 1%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) declined 2.8%, and its bearish counterpart, Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ), advanced 3.2%.CommoditiesCrude oil increased 0.8%, and the United States Oil Fund (USO) gained 0.9%. Natural gas shed 3.2%, and the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) dropped 2%.Gold on Comex fell 0.7%, and the State Street SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) declined 0.9%. Silver advanced 0.5%, and iShares Silver Trust (SLV) rose 0.4%.ConsumerThe State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) shed 0.7%. The Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF (VDC) fell 0.8%, and iShares Dow Jones US Consumer Goods (IYK) eased 0.5%.The State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) lost 0.5%. The VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) fell 1.3%, and the State Street SPDR S&P Retail (XRT) dropped 2.3%.HealthcareThe State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR (XLV) fell 2.2%; iShares US Healthcare (IYH) dropped 2.1% and Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT) declined 1.8%, while iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) shed 1.7%.IndustrialThe State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR (XLI) was little changed. The Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) gained 0.2% and iShares US Industrials (IYJ) dropped 0.4%.CryptocurrencyIn midday activity, bitcoin (BTC-USD) fell 0.4%. Among cryptocurrency ETFs, ProShares Bitcoin ETF (BITO) lost 1.4%, ProShares Ether ETF (EETH) advanced 1.8%, and ProShares Bitcoin & Ether Market Cap Weight ETF (BETH) slipped 1.4%.

Dow Jones^EEM^EXI^FAS^FAZ^GLD^IBB^IGM^IGV^IPK^IVV^IWMNasdaq Composite^IYE^IYH^IYJ^IYK^IYW^PMR^QQQ^RTH^SOXXS&P 500^SPY^UNG^USO^VDC^VHT^VIS^XLE^XLF^XLI^XLK^XLP^XLV^XRT^XSD$BETH$BITO$EETH
Asia Markets

Update: US Equity Indexes Fall as Strikes on Saudi Arabian Energy Sites Send Crude Oil Higher

(Updates with index/price moves, comments and company/geopolitical news from the first paragraph.)US equity indexes declined as an Iran-backed militia group's attack on Saudi Arabian energy sites pushed crude oil prices higher.The Nasdaq Composite declined 0.2% to 26,455.1, the S&P 500 retreated 0.4% to 7,688.2, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1.1% to 52,839.5 after midday Tuesday.Energy and utilities were among a trio of gainers intraday. Healthcare and financials led decliners.Yemen's Tehran-backed Houthis attacked energy facilities and cities in US ally Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, wounding more than 70 people and underscoring the risk of the Iran conflict escalating into a wider regional war, Reuters reported. Saudi Arabia said the attacks stopped operations at several energy facilities in the kingdom's south, Bloomberg reported, while noting a pick-up in buying by China, the world's largest importer.The front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil contract climbed 0.7% to $92.11 per barrel, and global benchmark North Sea Brent advanced 0.3% to $97.27 per barrel, off session highs of more than 1% each."As we ponder a prolonged conflict, our expectations increasingly shift to a slower recovery in Middle East oil supply," Peter Taylor, head of commodity strategy at Macquarie, said in a note. "In this environment, we would anticipate deficits persisting through [year-end 2026], with the market approximately balanced in 2027."US Treasury yields rose, with the two-year up 1.5 basis points to 4.39% and the 10-year higher by 1.4 basis points to 4.80%.Gold futures fell 1.1% to $4,428.1.In company news, Intel (INTC) is expected to raise personal computer central processing unit prices by another 10% in early October, Digitimes reported, citing supply chain sources. Intel shares jumped 9%, among the top gainers on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq.Palantir Technologies (PLTR) and Nebius Group (NBIS) agreed on a strategic partnership that will give Palantir commercial customers access to Nebius' artificial intelligence-native compute infrastructure and cloud platform, the companies said Tuesday. Nebius surged 10%, among the biggest Nasdaq outperformers.Novartis (NVS) sank 13% after the company said its phase 3 Harbor study evaluating delpacibart etedesiran in patients with myotonic dystrophy type 1 failed to meet its primary endpoint of video hand opening time.Canadian tariffs announced after trade talks with the US collapsed last month took effect on Tuesday and range from 15% to 50%, impacting hundreds of US products, including dairy, agricultural equipment, paper, household appliances and electronics.

Dow JonesNasdaq CompositeS&P 500$INTC$NBIS$NVS$PLTR