US markets slide on tech companies despite 3 year high for oil
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In the US both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq indexes took a tumble from their previous close prices as technology companies spearheaded losses.
The S&P 500 was down 0.28 per cent at the open despite a standout performance by energy stocks on the back of surging oil prices. Occidental Petroleum Corp jumped by 7.86 per cent, Cabot Oil and Gas corp was lifted by 7.62 per cent and Diamondback energy climbed 7.46 per cent.
Meanwhile, bio-technology companies dragged the index. Charles River Laboratories International tumbled by 6.51 per cent while Bio-Rad laboratories slid by 5.59. Although the Dow Jones index was lifted 0.27 per cent mega-cap tech companies Microsoft Corp and Apple Inc slipped between 1.4 per cent and 2.4 per cent.
FTSE 100
Back in London it was a similar story. the capital’s premiere FTSE index closed flat this afternoon, up by a measly 0.17 per cent to stand at 7,063.40 points at close time.
Rolls Royce Holdings was the day’s winner, driving growth with gains of 11.3 per cent after the company secured a contract from the US Air Force.
Brent crude topped $79.64 a barrel, its highest level in three years, boosting shares in BP and Royal Dutch Shell. Despite ongoing fuel shortages BP shares jumped by 3.47 per cent and Shell was up 4.47 per cent after the government loosened competition laws to allow firms to collaborate on easing the crisis.
FTSE 250
London’s mid cap index slumped by 0.16 per cent, dropping to 23,608.63 points as tech companies proved a drag on markets both sides of the pond. Healthcare company Dechra Pharmaceuticals was the day’s loser, shedding 6.65 per cent while growth hub IMI also took a battering with losses of 5.71 per cent.
Analysts say
Susannah Streeter, a senior analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, cautioned that the fallout from Evergrande’s debt crisis could cause the markets to dip further in the weeks ahead.
“Worries about China’s debt laden property group Evergrande may be background noise today but they linger on,” Streeter said.
“There are still fears about repercussions of a default across the property, construction, mining and potentially financial sectors in the region, causing fresh ripples across the global economy.”
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