Global Markets Jittery as Asian Shares Fall and Oil Prices Hit New Lows

Asian shares continued to slump as investors exited chip stocks following an extraordinary quarter. Concurrently, oil prices dipped to new lows amid improving U.S.-Iran relations. Key U.S. jobs data might influence interest rate expectations. The market seesaws with semiconductor sell-offs, potential U.S. rate hikes, and fluctuating currency values.

Asian shares further plunged on Thursday, with investors pulling away from chipmakers following an exceptional quarter. Currency and bond markets are poised for U.S. jobs data, anticipated to provide insight into potential interest rate hikes.

Oil prices sunk to new four-month lows, with Brent crude decreasing 1% to $70.88 per barrel, following U.S. President Donald Trump's positive talks with Iran in Qatar and increased oil tanker movement through the Strait of Hormuz. Conversely, European shares are expected to remain stable, with regional stock futures largely unchanged.

Wall Street futures ticked up by 0.2% after semiconductor shares plummeted overnight. In stark contrast, Meta Platforms surged nearly 9% on plans to create a cloud business to market excess AI computing capacity. However, MSCI's broad index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dropped 1.2%, and Japan's Nikkei fell by 1.4%. Bucking the trend, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index increased by 0.9%.