By: Dr. Mike Campbell
Last week saw most of the world’s major stock exchanges again all close lower for the sixth week in a row; the Nikkei bucked the trend. In Europe over the course of the week, the FTSE fell by 1.5%, closing at 5765.8; the Dax shed a further 0.55% to close at 7069.9; the CAC weakened by 2.2% to end the session at 3805.09.
The Dow ended the week down by 1.6% finishing the trading session at 11951.9. The Nasdaq ended the week down by 3.3% to close at 2643.73.
The Nikkei rose over the course of the week, making 0.23% to end the trading session at 9514.44.
Currency Markets Review
On the currency markets last week, the Yen had the best of the trading. The Dollar was stronger against Sterling, gaining 0.12% and closing at 1.63057 to the Pound. The Greenback was flat against the Euro last week, rising by 0.01% to close at 1.4486. The Dollar also lost ground against the Japanese currency, closing at 80.0773 to the Yen, a loss of 0.75% on the week.
The Euro closed down against the Yen ending at 116.00, dipping by 0.76% over the course of the week. The Euro made ground against Sterling over the course of the week by 0.1%; the close saw one £ buying 1.1256.
Commodities Market Review
On the commodities market, the price for Brent crude ended higher, closing at $118.78 per barrel (for July delivery); a hike of 2.5% over the course of the week’s trading. The value of gold fell last week, closing at $1529.3 per ounce and representing a loss of 0.70% over last week’s value.