OREANDA-NEWS. Stock indices on the eve were in the red following the results of sessions on exchanges in the UK and the USA. The reason was the decline in business activity in the United States and the fear of an escalation of the trade war.

In the UK, the FTSE 100 index of the London Stock Exchange at the time of closing fell by 3.2%, which was the strongest drop in a day since January 2016. The US S&P 500 and Nasdaq indices were also in the red throughout the trading session, however, at the time of closing, the decline wasn't so noticeable. The S&P 500 fell 1.8%, while the Nasdaq fell 1.6%, the biggest drop in several weeks. In addition, the Dow Jones for the day fell by 1.86% and as a result of two trading sessions fell by more than 3% - this is the worst start of the quarter for the index since 2008, notes Market Watch.

On Thursday morning, Asian exchanges also opened in the red. Japanese Topix fell 2.1% (the worst result in the last two months). The situation was similar in Australia, where the decline was 2.2%. In Hong Kong, a decline of 0.8%, in China and South Korea, exchanges are closed due to public holidays. According to the American business newspaper, citing UBS, the reason was the ongoing trade war between the United States and China, a decline in business activity, as well as employment data in the United States. The largest drop in New York was demonstrated by the energy and financial sectors.

At the same time, experts indicate that overall macroeconomic statistics show good performance, but the level of production throughout the world continues to decline. Geopolitical factors are also affecting: the traders are worried about the threat of impeachment to President Donald Trump and the risk of a hard British exit from the EU.