Last week was a mixed affair for the world’s stock exchanges; Japan and the USA closed higher, but Europe was flat or in negative territory. In Europe over the course of the week, the FTSE put on 0.12%, closing at 5508.5; the Dax dipped by just 0.08%, ending the week at 6209.8; the CAC lost on 0.1% to end the session at 3722.0.
The Dow ended the week stronger by 1.4%, finishing the trading session at 10607.9 The Nasdaq ended the week higher by an impressive 3.3%; closing at 2315.6.
The Nikkei had a good week in response to the government’s currency moves and closed up by 4.2% over the course of the week ending trading at 9626.1.
Currency Markets
On the currency markets last week the Bank of Japan intervened to send the Yen lower against the Dollar. This led to gains in stock markets on both sides of the Pacific. The Euro had the best of the trading. The Dollar was weaker against Sterling by 1.1% closing at 1.5627 to the Pound. The Greenback was weaker against the Euro by 2.6%, to close at 1.3060. The Dollar was up against the Japanese currency at 85.7427 to the Yen, a gain of 2.1% on the week.
The Euro regained ground against the Yen closing at 111.98, making 4.8%. The Euro strengthened against Sterling over the course of the week by 1.5%. The close saw one
£ buying 1.1965€. The markets had stabilised against a (slightly) weaker Yen; it will be interesting to see sentiment emerge over the longer run. The Japanese intervention has restored the Dollar to its mid-August value.
Commodities Market
On the commodities market, the price for Brent crude was flat, closing at $78.2 per barrel (for November delivery); a rise of 0.06% over the course of the week’s trading. The value of gold rose to 1273 per ounce, representing a gain of 1.9% over last week’s value, a new record high.