U.S. markets slipped again on Friday amid concerns over the fallout from the Iran war. The Dow ended at 47,502 points, down 1.0 percent. The Nasdaq fell 1.5 percent to 24,643 points for its 100 biggest names, and the broader S&P 500 closed at 6,740, a decline of 1.3 percent.
Alongside rising energy prices and fears that inflation could be stoked, a weak labour‑market report also weighed on sentiment. Credit‑squeeze concerns spread, prompting many investors to shift assets into cash. As a result, BlackRock securities were sold off in large volumes and lagged by roughly seven percent. Bitcoin also fell into the red that day, dropping 4 percent to €58,650 per coin.
The AI issue continued to feed nervousness: after Oracle and OpenAI shelved their plans for a new data‑centre in Texas, chip‑maker shares fell sharply.
The euro was somewhat stronger on Friday evening: one dollar traded at €0.8611, while one euro bought $1.1613.
Gold benefited, rising to $5,171 per troy ounce (+1.7 percent) in the evening-a price that equals €143.16 per gram.
Oil kept climbing strongly: a barrel of Brent crude fetched about $92.84 in German evening trading around 10 p.m., an increase of 8.7 percent from the previous day’s close.