Shares skid in Asia in sell-off of AI-related shares as Brent oil tops $100 per barrel

BANGKOK (AP) — Shares skidded Friday in Asia after Brent crude shot to its highest price since May as heavy fighting in the Middle East again threatened to slow the global flow of oil and gas.

U.S. futures were little changed after tumbles for two of Wall Street’s most influential companies, Alphabet and Tesla, yanked U.S. stocks to their worst loss in a month.

Looming over markets: The deepening crisis in the Middle East, worries over the a potential bubble in investments in artificial intelligence and another round of tariff hikes by U.S. President Donald Trump.

The U.S. is imposing taxes of 10% to 12.5% on imports from 60 trading partners, accounting for 99% of U.S. imports, saying they failed to fully enforce bans on goods produced by forced labor, the Trump administration said Thursday.

That move came just as the clock was running out Friday on stopgap levies the president imposed after a stinging defeat for other such tariffs at the Supreme Court.

Such uncertainties have helped push the U.S. dollar to a 40-year high against the Japanese yen. A dollar bought 163.83 yen early Friday, a level last seen in 1986. The euro was barely changed at $1.1378.

South Korea's Kospi stuttered lower, falling 5.9% to $6,681.98. Samsung Electronics sank 8% and shares in computer chipmaker SK Hynix dropped 7.4%.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 declined 3.1% to 64,377.28, led by losses for technology companies. SoftBank Group, which has massive investments in artificial intelligence, tumbled 7.5%.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 1.3% to 24,891.84, while the Shanghai Composite index shed 1.2% to 3,830.19.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 lost 1% to 8,755.10.

On Thursday, the price of Brent crude shot to as high as $102 per barrel and settled at $100.69 per barrel, up 7%. Early Friday in Asia, it was down 0.3% at $100.40 per barrel. Before the Iran war began in late February it was trading around $72 per barrel.

U.S. benchmark crude slipped 0.5% to $91.71 per barrel.

The cause for the latest spike in prices: attacks on two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea. That threatens another avenue that oil companies use to move their crude from the Middle East to customers worldwide, along with the Strait of Hormuz.

Underscoring the importance of the sea route for the economy, Trump threatened “major military punishment” against the Houthi rebels in Yemen, who are backed by Iran, if they keep attacking ships.

U.S. stocks fell under the pressure of rising oil prices, which raise costs for businesses and cut into their customers’ ability to spend.

The S&P 500 fell 1.2% and is on track for its first back-to-back weekly loss since March. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 506 points, or 1%, and the Nasdaq composite sank 2.2%.

Higher inflation could push the Federal Reserve and other central banks to raise interest rates, which would slow economies and undercut prices for stocks and other investments.

The European Central Bank held its main interest rates steady at its meeting Thursday.

Gasoline prices tend to follow oil prices higher, and a gallon of regular costs an average of $4.09 across the United States, according to AAA. That is still below highs of roughly $4.56 in May, but it was at just $3.93 a month ago.

Tesla tumbled 14.5% after Elon Musk’s electric-vehicle company reported a weaker profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Because Tesla one of the largest stocks in the S&P 500 by market value, its stock has more influence on the index than nearly every other.

One of the few that is larger is Alphabet. Its stock fell 7.1% even though the parent company of Google delivered stronger profit and revenue than analysts expected.

Investors focused instead on how much Alphabet is planning to spend on AI after the company raised its forecast for capital spending.

Associated Press Business Writers Matt Ott and Stan Choe contributed to this report.

A dealer talks on the phone near the screens showing the foreign exchange rates at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, July 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

A dealer walks past near the screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, July 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

A TV cameraman prepares to film near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, July 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

An employee walks past near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, July 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) — Weekends for Mukthar Oladunmade since he was a child have typically featured a visit to the beach. In the ceaselessly bustling city of Lagos, he prefers to unwind on the breezy Atlantic shoreline that nearly surrounds the city.

But these days, going to the beach in Nigeria's commercial hub has become expensive. It now involves a virtual spreadsheet of expenses, including fees for entry, chairs, food, drinks and activities as the local government hands over more of the shore to private developers.

“It costs a lot of money for the average Nigerian to come here,” Oladunmade, a 27-year-old writer, said at Takwa Bay, one of the few islands that are not privately owned.

He travels regularly across West Africa for work, and his favorite evening pastime is relaxing at the beach, whether in Accra, Cotonou, Dakar or elsewhere in the region. He says it's only in Lagos where that has become nearly impossible.

“On average, I spend 25,000 naira ($18) whenever I think of coming to the beach,” he said.

That’s beyond many residents of Lagos, where the majority of people work in the informal sector. Nigeria’s minimum wage is 77,000 naira ($56) per month.

The beach is one of the few public spaces in the city of over 20 million residents to escape the crowds and Lagos’ often sweltering heat. The city is near the equator, with humidity averaging 80% year round.

But most of the city's 180-kilometer-long coastline is being privatized by the government or by families with ancestral claim to the land. The Lagos state government also has reclaimed land for exclusive residences and developments including a causeway and deep sea port.

What used to be free public spaces are mostly now ticketed ones, with entry fees ranging from 2,000 ($1.50) to 60,000 naira ($44), as the state government has licensed them to individuals or businesses.

A surging economy has grown around the beaches, where items are priced steeply under private owners.

“They are only making money half of the year, having put a lot of money in it,” said Doyin Ogunye, who runs drinks and food businesses at beaches. “So the entry to the beach, the food and drinks will be more expensive.”

The state government has long promoted Lagos as a “megacity” to attract more tourists and international businesses.

It is paying off. In 2025, Lagos state generated 2.6 trillion naira ($1.9 billion) in internal revenues, a 16% increase from 2024 and far more than any other Nigerian state, according to its commissioner of finance.

But the drive has come at the expense of lower and middle-class residents in numerous ways, from provision of basic services to the pressure on people to move out of coastal areas.

“The approach of the Lagos state government for a long time has not been about the people, it is about the money. It is about how do we build this city in a way that is making money?” said Olamide Udoma-Ejorh, director of the Lagos Urban Development Initiative nonprofit that advocates for an inclusive city.

Officials of the Lagos state government did not respond to a request for comment. In the past, the government has insisted the beaches are cleaner and safer as a result of the privatization.

Every hour is rush hour in Lagos. With constant gridlock, the din of generators and the city’s signature creaky yellow buses, slapped with vibrant decals, circulating round the clock, residents say it is a stressful city.

Esther Sorkpor, a final-year student at the University of Lagos, said she is frustrated with the limited beach access.

“I should have access to nature for free. This is a reflection of how everything is monetized," she said. “Nigeria is already a very high-tension country, and it is just very stressful to navigate.”

Analysts say a review is needed of how the government manages public spaces. “The beach should be seen as a civic asset,” Udoma-Ejorh said.

As the sun set, beachgoers at Takwa Bay packed their bags and headed home. They hopped on engine-powered wooden boats that sped across the coastal shoreline of Eko Atlantic, a private residence for the ultra rich, which has long defined Lagos' megacity ambition.

More of those are planned.

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Mukthar Oladunmade, a 27-year-old writer, right, buys a coconut at Takwa Bay beach in Lagos, Nigeria, Sunday, June 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)

Beachgoers dance at Takwa Bay beach in Lagos, Nigeria, Sunday, June 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)

Beachgoers play at Takwa Bay beach in Lagos, Nigeria, Sunday, June 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)

Beachgoers play at Takwa Bay beach in Lagos, Nigeria, Sunday, June 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)

Mukthar Oladunmade, a 27-year-old writer, plays in the water at Takwa Bay beach in Lagos, Nigeria, Sunday, June 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)