The sudden escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which industries and individual stocks will be negatively impacted?

According to the Zhongtong Finance APP, just as global financial markets are already grappling with the impact of high interest rates and economic slowdown, the sudden outbreak of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has sparked new concerns among investors about geopolitical risks. As the risk of escalation in the Middle East remains high, oil prices have surged by more than 5%, while US stock index futures have fallen during the Asian trading session.

Tina Teng, an analyst at CMC Markets, wrote in a report, "The Israeli-Hamas conflict over the weekend may intensify geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, triggering safe-haven trades. The market will be watching for chain reactions in the region."

This event has also cast a shadow over the prospects of companies that derive part of their revenue from the country, and may potentially impact the stock prices of some global generic drug manufacturers, chip makers, diamond processors, and software service providers.

Here are some global investment themes that may be affected by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict:

Technology

Chip stocks, from Nvidia (NVDA.US) and Applied Materials (AMAT.US) to TSMC (TSM.US) and Samsung Electronics (SSNLF.US), may be affected as this could impact Intel's (INTC.US) plans.

In June of this year, the US semiconductor giant agreed to build a new manufacturing plant in Israel, as part of its and its peers' efforts to diversify production sources. At the time, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu valued the deal at $25 billion.

Additionally, Check Point Software (CHKP.US), headquartered in Tel Aviv, may be affected, and attention will also be given to stocks like Datadog (DDOG.US) and other cybersecurity stocks. Indian software exporters with operations in Israel include Tata Consultancy Services Ltd., Infosys (INFY.US), Tech Mahindra Ltd., and Wipro (WIT.US).

Generic Drugs

Global generic drug manufacturers such as India's Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Ltd. and Lupin Ltd. may be worth watching due to any potential impact on Teva Pharmaceutical (TEVA.US), the industry leader based in Israel.

Indian Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, which owns a 72% stake in Taro Pharmaceutical (TARO.US) in Israel, fell 2% in early trading in Mumbai. Compiled data shows that as of May 26, the company held a 72% stake in Taro.

Oil and Transportation

Although Israel is not a major oil-producing country, the increasingly tense situation in the Middle East is pushing up oil prices and related stock prices.

With the return of war risk premiums to the market, WTI crude oil rose to over $88 per barrel in early Asian trading on Monday, with an intraday increase of nearly 5%. Asian producers such as Woodside Energy (WDS.US) and Santos Ltd. have seen their stock prices rise by more than 3%.This could potentially boost the performance of oil giants such as Chevron (CVX.US), BP (BP.US), Shell (SHEL.US), and Total (TTE.US) in the US stock market later in the day.

Manish Bhargava, fund manager at Straits Investment Holdings Pte, said, "The attack on Israel could lead to increased market volatility and pose greater risks for investors in the short term. If the geopolitical tensions in the Middle East escalate and disrupt oil production or transportation, it could result in a significant increase in oil prices."

Furthermore, any disruption in shipping routes near Iran could affect shipping stocks such as Taiwan's Evergreen Marine Corp. and Germany's Hapag-Lloyd. According to reports, Iran has been implicated in Hamas' sudden attack on Israel.

Israeli Market

Companies that have Israel as a major market will also be of interest to traders, such as Taboola Com (TBLA.US) and Kenon (KEN.US).

This conflict may also shift focus to defense stocks, such as Lockheed Martin (LMT.US) in the US and BAE Systems (BAESF.US) in Europe.

Diamonds and Gold

Diamonds are one of Israel's largest export products, with the country's diamond industry mainly focused on cutting and polishing.

According to relevant supply chain data, 8.2% of Alrosa PJSC's annual revenue comes from Israel, and the stock price of diamond grading company Sarine Technologies in Singapore has dropped by 3.1%.

Other related Asian stocks include Indian mining company NMDC Ltd., jewelry manufacturer Kalyan Jewellers India Ltd., and Titan Co.

Meanwhile, as tensions in the Middle East intensify and demand for safe-haven assets increases, the stock prices of Asian gold mining companies like Newcrest Mining Ltd. (NCMGF.US) in Australia have risen in response.