The S&P 500 and the Dow Jones opened lower on Wall Street today, as a flare-up in the Middle East conflict drove oil prices higher and cast doubt on a quick resolution to the war.
The Dow Jones fell 87 points (0.17%) at the open to trade at 51,221, while the S&P 500 dipped four points (0.06%) to stand at 7,605 and the Nasdaq Composite was fairly fat at 27,093 at the opening bell.
European shares continued to fall this afternoon as those renewed Middle East hostilities and signs of strain in private markets spooked investors, but Zara owner Inditex gained after reporting a strong start to the summer.
London's FTSE index had dipped 17 points (0.1%) to stand at 10,356 by 2.35pm, while the Paris CAC was down 49 points (0.4%) to trade at 8,170 and the Frankfurt DAX lost 239 points (0.9%) to reach 24,884.
Dublin's ISEQ index was also lower this afternoon, falling by 77 points (0.6%) to hit 13,090. Shares in Ryanair dropped 3% to stand at €23.96, while Origin Enterprises fell 1.8% to trade at €4.51. Shares in Irish Continental Group were down 1.2% to reach €6.22 and Kerry Group shed 1.1% to hit €72.05.
Earlier in Asian trade, Tokyo's Nikkei index jumped 1,668 points (2.5%) to finish at 68,402, closing above 68,000 for the first time just two days after breaching 67,000 as a rally in AI-related stocks outweighed concerns over the Middle East. But Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 405 points (1.5%) to close at 25,633 as investors sought hardware opportunities elsewhere.
