By: Dr. Mike Campbell
Friday marked the last full week’s trading session in May. The week was mixed for the major stock markets with the best performance coming from Europe. In Europe over the course of last week, the markets all closed higher; the FTSE gained 2.5%, closing at 5188.4 and ending the month 1.3% higher; the CAC climbed by 2.5% to end the session at 3515.1 increasing its value by 3.6% in May; the Dax rose by 2% ending the week at 5946.2; stronger by 4% over the month.
The Dow ended the week down by 0.6%, finishing the trading session at 10136.6 falling by 2.4% over the month. The Nasdaq ended the week down by 1.3%, closing at 2257 shedding 0.4% in May.
The Nikkei closed down by 0.2% over the course of the week ending trading at 9763 but ended May worth 5.8% less than it began.
On the currency markets last week, the Dollar was mixed against other major currencies. Against the Euro, the US currency rose by 0.9% over the course of the week, closing at 1.2384 to the Euro; over the month, the Dollar strengthened by 2.8%. The Greenback was weaker against the British Pound, falling by 1.5%, to close at 1.45703 to the Pound, but rose by 0.8% in May. The Dollar closed at 91.2952 to the Yen, a gain of 1.8% on the week, but a depreciation of 1.3% in May.
The Euro had a mixed week on the back of continuing uncertainty about the sovereign debt situation. It rose by 0.98% against the Yen closing at 113.06, ending the month 4.1% lower. The Euro fell against Sterling over the week by 2.4%, the close saw one £ buying 1.17659€, but ended the month lower by just 2.13%
On the commodities market, the price for Brent crude was marginally higher, closing at $74 per barrel (for July delivery); a hike of 3.3% over the course of the week’s trading, but a decline of 5.4% over the course of the month. The value of gold strengthened again; closing at 1212 $ per ounce, representing a gain of 2.3% and an appreciation of 1% over the month.