Friday marked the final trading session for July from the perspective of these summaries. It was another mixed affair.
In Europe over the course of the week, the FTSE was down by 1.1%, it closed at 6554.8 but it put on 2.8% in July; the Dax ended at 8244.9 slipping by 1.5% over the course of the week, however it put on 5.6% over the month; the CAC was up by 1.1% to end the session at 3968.8 and made 5.7% in July.
The Dow ended the week higher making 0.10% to end at 15558.8, gaining 2.8% over the month. The Nasdaq composite index ended at 3613.2, gaining 0.71% over the course of the week and 3.9% during July.
The Nikkei 225 ended the week’s trading down by 3.2% to end the session at 14130, but it rose by 0.15% in July.
Currency Markets in Review
On the currency markets last week, the Yen saw the best of trading. The Dollar was weaker against Sterling last week, closing at 1.5366 to the Pound; a fall of 0.6% over the week and 3.1% over the month. The Greenback weakened against the Euro last week falling by 0.92% to close at 1.3261 and slipping by 3.1% in July. The Dollar was also weaker against the Japanese currency, closing at 98.26 to the Yen, making a loss of 2.2% during the week and 2.7% on the month.
The Euro weakened against the Yen ending at 130.3, a loss of 1.3% over the course of the week, but it appreciated by 0.6% in July. It made ground against Sterling last week rising by 0.32%; the close saw one £ buying €1.1588, representing a gain of 0.28% on the month.
Commodities Market Review
On the commodities market, the price for Brent crude ended lower, at $107.2 per barrel (for September delivery); a fall of 0.83% over the course of the week’s trading and 0.5% on the month. The value of gold was higher last week, closing at $1331 per ounce, representing a gain of 2.7% over the previous week’s value and a recovery of 9.8% over the month.
The data that supports this article is drawn from Bloomberg, The Financial Times and X-rates.