New Delhi, September 26 (HS): Global markets signaled weakness on Friday as pressure from profit booking continued across major indices. U.S. markets closed lower in the previous session for the third consecutive day, while European bourses also ended in the red. Asian markets mirrored the trend, with most regional indices trading lower.

On Wall Street, profit-taking dragged key indices lower for the third straight session. The S&P 500 fell 0.50 percent to close at 6,604.72, while the Nasdaq Composite slipped 113.16 points, or 0.50 percent, to 22,384.70. The Dow Jones Futures, however, showed a marginal uptick of 0.08 percent, trading at 45,985.13 in early deals.

European markets also witnessed heavy selling in the last session. The FTSE index fell 0.40 percent to settle at 9,213.98, the CAC slipped 0.41 percent to 7,795.42, while Germany’s DAX dropped 131.98 points, or 0.56 percent, closing at 23,534.83.

Asian markets largely remained under selling pressure, with 7 out of 9 indices trading in the red, while only two showed gains. The Jakarta Composite was up 0.36 percent at 8,069.48, and the Straits Times Index added 0.11 percent to reach 4,278.42.

On the losing side, GIFT Nifty declined 101.50 points, or 0.41 percent, to 24,857.50. Japan’s Nikkei lost 185.93 points, or 0.41 percent, dropping to 45,569. South Korea’s Kospi plunged sharply by 92.21 points, or 2.66 percent, to 3,378.90. Taiwan Weighted also slipped 502.54 points, or 1.93 percent, closing at 25,521.31.Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 173.68 points, or 0.66 percent, to 26,311.

The SET Composite eased 0.45 percent to 1,282.45, while China’s Shanghai Composite drifted lower by 0.18 percent, trading at 3,846.33.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar