Equities tumble as Brexit concerns mount

Sharp sell-off in tech stocks also threaten to stall rally that jumped to near record highs

NEW YORK:

Global equity markets and oil prices tumbled on Tuesday as a sharp sell-off in technology stocks and rising concerns over Britain leaving the European Union without a trade agreement threatened to stall a rally that had pushed world shares near record highs despite the coronavirus pandemic.

Fresh tensions between Washington and Beijing after US President Donald Trump again raised the idea of decoupling the US and Chinese economies also came into focus but appeared to have little impact.

“I think the market will shrug this off as electioneering but may find the lining up of technology stock sellers harder to process as the US market returns from a holiday yesterday,” said Chris Bailey, European Strategist at Raymond James. MSCI’s gauge of stocks across the globe shed 1.5% following broad declines in Europe and modest gains in Asian markets.

In midday trading on Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 431.97 points, or 1.54%, to 27,701.34, the S&P 500 lost 66.18 points, or 1.93%, to 3,360.78 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 309.69 points, or 2.74%, to 11,003.45. While many market players were unable to pinpoint a single trigger for the Nasdaq’s plunge, valuations have been stretched given its 75% gain from a bottom hit in March.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 9^th, 2020.

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