Dollar strengthening persists
US equities slide continued on Friday. S&P 500 lost 0.9% to 2781.01, closing 2.1% higher for the week. Dow Jones industrial average slid 0.8% to 25989.30. The Nasdaq fell 1.7% to 7406.90. The dollar extended gains on stronger than expected producer price inflation October report: the live dollar index data show the ICE US Dollar index, a measure of the dollar’s strength against a basket of six rival currencies, rose 0.2% to 96.861 and is higher currently. Futures on stock indices point to higher openings today.
European stocks end week higher
European stocks pulled back on Friday. Both the EUR/USD and GBP/USD continued their decline with both pairs down currently. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index slid 0.4%, managing however to book 0.5% gain for the week. The DAX 30 rose 0.02% to 11529.16. France’s CAC 40 lost 0.5% and UK’s FTSE 100 retreated 0.5% to 7105.34 despite higher third quarter GDP growth in line with forecasts.
Shanghai Composite leads Asian indices gains
Asian stock indices are mostly higher today led by Chinese stocks. Nikkei added 0.1% to 22269.88 as yen turned lower against the dollar. Chinese stocks are rising as Premier Li Keqiang said Beijing will further open up its economy ahead of meetings with Asia-Pacific leaders in Singapore: the Shanghai Composite Index is up 1.2% while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index is 0.02% lower. Australia’s All Ordinaries Index added 0.3% with Australian dollar accelerating slide against the greenback.
Brent surges on Saudi supply cut comment
Brent futures prices are rebounding today after top exporter Saudi Arabia announced a supply cut in December. Prices fell yesterday on reports about rising global crude output: Brent for January settlement edged 0.7% lower to close at $70.18 a barrel Friday.