By: Dr. Mike Campbell
Last week saw US and Japanese markets moving forward whilst Europe stagnated or retreated. In Europe over the course of the week, the FTSE stood still gaining just 0.01%, closing at 5990.6; the Dax dipped by 0.23% to close at 7402.7; the CAC weakened by 2.3% to end the session at 3913.6.
The Dow ended the week up by 0.73% finishing the trading session at 12675.2. The Nasdaq ended the week up by 1.6% to close at 2859.8.
The Nikkei rose over the course of the week, gaining 2% to end the trading session at 10069.5, breaching the 10000 point barrier for the first time since the earthquake and tsunami struck on 11th March.
Currency Markets Review
On the currency markets last week, the Dollar had the best of the trading by the time my reference data was generated (this was before disappointing US employment details were released). The Dollar was higher against Sterling, making 0.4% and closing at 1.59449 to the Pound. The Greenback made ground against the Euro last week, climbing by 1.7% to close at 1.4242. The Dollar made ground against the Japanese currency, closing at 81.4352 to the Yen, a rise of 0.91% on the week.
The Euro closed down against the Yen ending at 115.98, shedding 0.8% over the course of the week. The Euro also lost ground against Sterling over the course of the week by 1.3%; the close saw one £ buying 1.11957.
Commodities Market Review
On the commodities market, the price for Brent crude ended higher, closing at $118.33 per barrel (for August delivery); a rise of 5.9% over the course of the week’s trading. The value of gold rose last week, closing at $1541.5 per ounce, representing a gain of 3.9% over last week’s value.