Last week was a mixed affair for the world’s major stock markets with the Dow Jones ending unchanged and the FTSE closing lower.
In Europe over the course of the week, the FTSE was down on last week’s close by 1% at 7106.7; the Dax ended at 11602, 1.3% up on last week’s close; the CAC was up by 0.95% to end the session at 5265.2.
The Dow ended the week essentially unchanged (down 0.02%) to close at 26026. The Nasdaq composite index was up by 0.9% over the course of the week at 7595.4.
The Nikkei 225 ended the week’s trading up by 0.83% to end the session at 21603.
Currency markets review
On the currency markets last week, Sterling again enjoyed the best of the trading. The Dollar was weaker against Sterling last week closing at $1.32222 to the Pound, a loss of 1.2% on the week. The Greenback was weaker against the Euro last week, falling by 0.29% to close at $1.1376 to the Euro.
The Dollar strengthened against the Japanese currency closing at 111.9 Yen to the Dollar, making a gain of 1.1% during the week.
The Euro was stronger against the Yen ending at 127.3, a gain of 1.4% over the course of the week. It was weaker against Sterling last week, the close saw one £ buying €1.1622, a loss of 0.91% on the week.
The Euro now buys 1.1361 CHF, a gain of 0.19% on the week.
Commodities market review
On the commodities market, the price for Brent crude ended at $65.07 per barrel, a fall of 3.1% over the course of the week’s trading. The value of gold was lower last week closing at $1291.6 per ounce, a fall of 2.8% on the week.