STOCKS | Asian Shares Start Lower As Chipmakers Weigh And Oil Jumps

Asian stocks fell in early trade on Friday as semiconductor weakness weighed on global equity indices, while oil prices were set for their sharpest weekly rise in three months as Middle East tensions flared again, according to RTHK. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index opened up 13 points, or 0.06 percent, at 25,022. The tech index fell two points, or 0.05 percent, to 4,832, while the China enterprises index rose 16 points, or 0.2 percent, to 8,334. The Shanghai Composite Index opened 0.44 percent lower at 3,865, the Shenzhen Component Index fell 0.97 percent to 14,348 and the ChiNext lost 1.36 percent to 3,642. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.06 percent, while the Nikkei at one stage dropped 2,939 points, or 4.4 percent, to 63,896 just before lunch. South Korea's market was closed for a holiday after the government on Thursday announced a temporary ban on new listings of exchange-traded funds tied to certain major technology firms, and raised minimum required deposits for retail investors in such products to curb volatility. Brent crude futures rose 0.7 percent to US$84.83 a barrel and U.S. crude gained 0.7 percent to US$79.49. The United States began a new wave of strikes against Iran on Thursday to "further degrade Iranian military capabilities," its Central Command said in a statement. For the week, both Brent and U.S. crude futures were set to rise more than 11 percent, their biggest gains since April.