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Friday, 29 March 2024

Oil jumps, stocks slide as Mideast tensions rise

Duration: 01:15s 0 shares 4 views

Oil jumps, stocks slide as Mideast tensions rise
Oil jumps, stocks slide as Mideast tensions rise

Oil prices jumped again Monday, while stocks headed the other way, as rising tensions in the Middle East had investors feeling anxious.

Julian Satterthwaite reports.

There's only one story for global investors right now.

The rising tensions in the Middle East following the U.S. killing of a top Iranian commander.

Rhetoric ramped up on both sides as Qassem Soleimani's funeral took place in Tehran on Monday (January 6).

Oil once again the first place to look for a market impact.

International benchmark Brent Crude up another 2%, adding to 3% gains seen Friday (January 3).

That took the spot price up to around 70 dollars per barrel.

Equities meanwhile lost ground.

Benchmark indexes in Europe were all in the red.

Germany's DAX among the hardest hit, down close to 2% in early trade.

Better-than-expected retail sales and purchasing managers' index figures there failed to provide much relief.

Oil majors like BP the only sector to see any real uplift.

The money coming out of shares seemed headed for safe havens.

Gold nudged seven-year highs on Monday morning.

Other traditional shelters, like German government bonds, also headed higher.

As the world waits to see whether Iran retaliates against the U.S... Investors may be playing it safe for some time to come.

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