Global financial markets reeled on Friday as oil prices surged and France’s borrowing costs climbed above 5% for the first time in decades.
Brent crude rose to $114.20 a barrel, its highest since May, after a 4% jump on Thursday as deadly attacks in Saudi Arabia stoked fears of a wider Middle East conflict disrupting energy supplies. Shipping costs for Middle East crude to Asia reached over $37 per barrel, more than five times pre-war levels, while European gas futures traded above €90 per megawatt-hour .
France’s 10-year government bond yield hit 5.07% late Thursday, with the premium over German Bunds at its widest in 15 years, as protests and fiscal pressures raised concerns about the country’s debt sustainability . The gap between French and German yields reached 173 basis points, while Italy’s 10-year yield stood at 4.61% .
The sell-off in tech stocks added to the turmoil, with the Nasdaq Composite dropping 2.6% on Thursday as doubts grew over the sustainability of AI investments. Meta fell 7% after raising its capital spending forecast, while Nvidia, Tesla, and Alphabet each declined over 3% . Investors sought safety in US bonds, pushing the 10-year Treasury yield down to 4.97% from 5.13% a day earlier .
Asian markets followed Wall Street lower on Friday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 and South Korea’s KOSPI both falling over 2% in early trading . The Polish stock exchange also reversed Wednesday’s record highs, dragged down by the global risk-off mood .
