Friday saw the final trading session for August from the perspective of these summaries.
In Europe over the course of the week, the FTSE was down on last week’s close by 0.3%, it closed at 6838.1, but making 0.66% on the month; the Dax ended at 10588, up by 0.42% on last week’s close and by 2.1% over August; the CAC was up by 0.94% to end the session at 4441.9, making 0.71% on the month.
The Dow ended the week down by 0.85% to close at 18395, slipping by 0.8% in August. The Nasdaq composite index was down by 0.37% over the course of the week at 5232.9, but essentially unchanged over the month.
The Nikkei 225 ended the week’s trading down by 1.1% to end the session at 16361, but it still made 0.66% over the month.
Currency markets review
On the currency markets last week Sterling enjoyed the best of the trading. The Dollar was weaker against Sterling last week closing at $1.3169 to the Pound, a loss of 0.84% on the week and 0.74% in August. The Greenback strengthened against the Euro last week by 0.8% to close at $1.1236 to the €, but it slipped by 1.4% over the course of the month. The Dollar was stronger against the Japanese currency, closing at 101.2 Yen to the Dollar, making a gain of 1% during the week, but a fall of 0.59% in August.
The Euro was stronger against the Yen ending at 113.7, a gain of 0.15% over the course of the week and 0.81% in August. It lost ground against Sterling last week, falling by 1.7%; the close saw one £ buying €1.1720, but it strengthened by 0.62% in August.
The Euro now buys 1.0920 CHF, a gain of 0.48% on the week and 0.59% in August.
Commodities market review
On the commodities market, the price for Brent crude ended at $49.92 per barrel, a rise of 2.8% over the course of the week’s trading and 13% on the month. The value of gold was lower last week, closing at $1321.2 per ounce, a loss of 1.4% on the week and 1% during the month.