By Chibuike Oguh

Global equity markets edged lower on Friday, set for a weekly decline as investors kept taking profits on high-flying technology and chip stocks, while crude oil prices slumped as more tankers left the Strait of Hormuz.

On Wall Street, all three indexes were trading lower in choppy trading as losses in industrials, technology and energy offset gains in healthcare and real estate stocks.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq were on track for a weekly loss while the Dow was headed for a weekly gain.

Chip stocks NASDAQ:SOX were down 5%, set for a weekly loss of 7.7%, the largest weekly decline since March.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJ:DJI fell 0.11%, the S&P 500 CBOE:SPX lost 0.15% and the Nasdaq Composite TVC:IXIC fell 0.29%.

"It's a combination of a needed and healthy period of consolidation following the historic run since March and a dramatic rotation from tech and everything else," said Mark Hackett, chief market strategist at Nationwide.

"Overall, the selloff is modest when put in context, and I expect we resume higher once this period of consolidation concludes since investors still have a buy-the-dip mentality and fundamentals remain solid."

Price hikes announced by Apple NASDAQ:AAPL had fuelled worries about structural inflation from massive spending by AI giants and limited availability of key tech components.

European stocks fell nearly 0.7% TVC:SXXP, with technology stocks (.SX8P) shedding 1.17%.

MSCI's index of Asian stocks outside Japan fell nearly 3% (.MIAPJ0000PUS). South Korea's KOSPI KRX:KOSPI lost as much as 5.8%.

MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe EURONEXT:IACWI fell 0.62% and was set for a 2.2% loss for the week.

OIL PRICES FALL SHARPLY

Brent crude futures ICEEUR:BRN1! fell 4.34% to settle at $72 per barrel.

YEN WEAKNESS

The yen FX_IDC:USDJPY teetered near its weakest level in 40 years against the dollar at 161.71, beyond the 160 level that many see as a line in the sand for Japanese authorities.

The euro FX:EURUSD was up 0.14% at $1.1385 but was set for a second consecutive weekly loss against the dollar.

The dollar index eased but was headed for a second straight weekly gain against peers. The index TVC:DXY fell 0.16% to 101.35.

In bonds, benchmark Treasury yields were lower in Europe and the U.S. The yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year notes TVC:US10Y fell 1.95 basis points to 4.373% while the yield on the benchmark German 10-year Bunds (DE10YT=RR) fell 0.53 basis points to 2.848%.

Spot gold TVC:GOLD rose 1.01% to $4,067.55 an ounce.