LONDON—The second half of the year started with another first class drubbing for global stock markets on Friday, as the recession concerns that have built in recent weeks also shoved oil and metals lower again.
MSCI’s world stocks index has had its worst start to a year since its 1990 creation over the last six months and a 1 percent early tumble in Europe and for Wall Street futures pointed to more pain ahead.
Asia had thudded lower too with the heaviest fall in Taiwan, where the growth-sensitive benchmark index slid more than 3 percent to its lowest since late 2020.
Japan’s Nikkei fell 1.75 percent. The Australian and New Zealand dollars each fell 1 percent to two-year lows. Growth-sensitive copper was down 2.7 percent and heading for its fourth straight weekly drop, while U.S. Treasuries and German Bunds rallied in the bond markets….