Dow Jones loses 450 points, posts weekly loss of 3%

US stocks ended Friday in the negative territory, posting weekly losses as oil prices continued to surge and concerns grew that the economy could slide into stagflation, amid fresh signs of weakness in the labor market.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.95%, or 453 points, to 47,501, bringing its weekly loss to 3%.

The broader S&P 500 declined 1.33%, or 90 points, to 6,740, recording a 2% weekly drop.

The Nasdaq Composite also fell 1.59%, or 361 points, to 22,387, marking a weekly loss of about 1.24%.

Globally cyclical stocks led losses on Wall Street. Boeing was the biggest lower, shedding 2.31% to $222.06. Caterpillar dropped 3.54% to $706.08.

Across the Atlantic, the Stoxx Europe 600 index fell 1% to 598 points, slipping below the key 600-point psychological level after surpassing it on Jan. 5, and recording a weekly loss of 5.55%.

The UK’s FTSE 100 declined 1.24% to 10,284, falling 5.74% for the week, while Germany’s DAX fell 0.94% to 23,591 and France’s CAC 40 dropped 0.65% to 7,993, posting weekly losses of 6.70% and 6.84%, respectively.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 rose 0.62% to 55,620, though it fell about 5.5% for the week. The broader Topix gained 0.39% to 3,716, but also recorded a weekly loss of nearly 5.6%.

Commodities

Brent crude futures for May delivery rose 8.52%, or $7.28, to $92.69 per barrel, posting weekly gains of 27.88%.

Meanwhile, US WTI crude futures for April delivery jumped 12.21%, or $9.89, to $90.90 per barrel, bringing weekly gains to 35.63% — the highest on record.

As for gold, futures for April delivery rose 1.57%, or $80, to $5,158.70 per ounce, but dropped 1.7% for the week.

What’s Driving Markets?

The sharp rise in oil prices followed remarks by US President Donald Trump, who ruled out any agreement with Iran short of “unconditional surrender.” The comments intensified inflation concerns, as the US economy lost 92,000 jobs in February while the unemployment rate rose.