📈 Global Markets Slide as Brent Crude Surpasses US$ 100 Benchmark

Asian stock markets declined on Thursday amid escalating Middle East shipping attacks and surging energy prices, pressuring import-dependent economies like Sri Lanka. • Energy & Commodity Spikes - Benchmark Brent crude rose to US$ 101.40/bbl, crossing the US$ 100 mark for the first time since July. - Mounting crude costs threaten Sri Lanka's petroleum import bill and domestic fuel pricing. - Rising agricultural commodity prices threaten higher food contributions to CPI, indicating sustained headline inflation. • Global Equity & Bond Markets - MSCI Asia-Pacific Index dropped 1%; Japan’s Nikkei and South Korea’s KOSPI both fell over 1%. - U.S. 10-year Treasury yields stood at 4.84%, near 2023 highs, following a disappointing US$ 6.00 Bn bond buyback. • Foreign Exchange & Monetary Policy - Traders price a 60% probability of a U.S. Fed rate hike next week ahead of CPI/PPI data. - Japanese Yen reached 153.63 per US$, gaining 4% in September on expectations of a hawkish Bank of Japan interest rate increase.