Asian markets were lower after US equities posted their sharpest decline in two weeks following a rally in bank shares.
The S&P 500 fell to its lowest level since Jan. 19 on Thursday, with financial companies in the index also falling. The banks came under fire after the collapse of Silvergate Capital Corp amid growing scrutiny in Washington.
Silicon Valley-based lender SVB Financial Group lost 60% after it took steps to shore up its capital position, fueling concerns that rising interest rates were weighing down its balance sheet.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 3.87%. Crude oil price was trading near $81, while bitcoin was trading near the $20,000 level.
At 8:05 am, the Singapore-traded SGX Nifty, an early indicator of India’s benchmark Nifty 50, was down 0.99% at 17,443.
Both the Indian benchmark indices – Sensex and Nifty – fell around 1% each, registering their worst declines in more than two weeks amid fears of a sharp rate hike.
The Indian rupee strengthened against the US dollar ahead of the release of US jobs data and its impact on the Federal Reserve’s rate hike decision.
Foreign investors in Indian equities turned net sellers on Thursday, ending a four-day buying streak. Foreign portfolio investors offloaded equity worth Rs 561.8 crore, while domestic institutional investors turned net buyers a day later and bought shares worth Rs 42.4 crore. He went on a nine-day buying streak and became a seller on March 8.