UK markets closed sharply lower on Friday, with the FTSE 100 index extending losses for the fifth consecutive day, after policy makers failed to reach a consensus on how to quell the Eurozone debt crisis.
Among banking sector stocks, HSBC, Barclays and Lloyds Banking Group declined between 0.7% and 2.0%, amid concerns over their exposure to the risky European government debt.
Outsourcing firm, Capita Group, the top laggard on the FTSE 100 index, slumped 4.1%, after it forecasted a sharp decline in its “organic revenue” for the full year 2011.
Miners, Rio Tinto, Anglo American and BHP Billiton slipped between 1.4% and 2.2%, amid concerns over a slowdown in Chinese demand.
ARM Holdings retreated 3.9%, after its president issued a cautious outlook for 2012.
BG Group slipped 1.3%, after its US shale gas joint venture partner, Exco, cut its investment budget for 2012.
Aviva slid 1.8%, after it sold bonds worth $400 million.
FTSE 100 shed 1.1% to end at 5,362.9. FTSE 250 lost 1.0% to settle at 10,044.4.
European Trading Review
European markets slid on Friday, after reports of a disagreement between France and Germany over the role of European Central Bank (ECB) in containing the region’s sovereign debt crisis overshadowed better-than-expected US economic data.
Among banking stocks, Deutsche Bank, Societe Generale and KBC Groep, plummeted between 1.2% and 7.0%, as risk appetite decreased among investors.
Chemical maker, Kemira, sank 14.0%, after it trimmed its full-year earnings estimate.
Consumer sector stock, TUI, declined 3.0%, after the company announced to sell its remaining stake in the container-shipping company, Hapag-Lloyd, in January.
Technology stocks, Infineon Technologies and Aixtron, lost 2.3% and 1.2%, respectively, after their UK peer, ARM Holdings, issued a cautious outlook for 2012.
FTSEurofirst 300 index declined 0.7% to 951.0. German DAX Xetra 30 dropped 0.9% to 5,800.2. French CAC-40 edged down 0.4% to 2,997.0.
US Trading Review
US markets ended mixed on Friday, as an apparent failure of US lawmakers to agree on cutting the country's deficit and concerns about ongoing Eurozone debt crisis offset positive economic data.
Salesforce.com, the top laggard on the S&P 500 index, declined 10.0%, after it posted a loss in its third quarter results.
Ketchup maker, Heinz fell 3.3%, after its second-quarter net income dropped 6.0%.
Retailer, Gap slid 2.5%, after its third-quarter results missed market expectations.
Telecom services provider, Clearwire slumped 21.0%, after a report quoted that it might miss a debt payment due in two weeks.
Hewlett-Packard, the top gainer on the DJIA index, rose 2.6%, after it added Relational Investors LLC’s Ralph Whitworth to its board.
Boeing advanced 2.1%, after it won an order from Indonesian carrier Lion Air.
DJIA edged up 0.2% to close at 11,796.2. NASDAQ declined 0.6% to 2,572.5. S&P 500 finished marginally lower to 1,215.7.
Forex Trading Review
At 0400 BST today, the GBP is trading 0.4% lower against the USD at $1.5745, 0.4% lower against the EUR at €1.1638, and 0.6% lower against the JPY at ¥120.88.
The EUR is trading marginally higher against the USD at $1.3529, after comments from President of Federal Reserve Bank of New York, William C. Dudley increased speculation that the US Central Bank would ease its monetary policy.
The EUR is trading 0.1% lower against the JPY at ¥103.86.
The USD and the JPY appreciated against most of the major currencies amid speculation that the US Congressional committee might announce today that it failed to reach an agreement on deficit cuts, increasing demand for safe haven currencies.
The GBP is trading lower against the EUR, amid speculation that European leaders would increase efforts to resolve the region’s sovereign debt crisis.
The AUD and NZD are trading lower against the USD and the JPY, amid speculation that the US might face another credit rating downgrade, damping demand for higher-yielding assets.
On Friday, the EUR ended higher against the USD, amid reports that the ECB would lend money to the International Monetary Fund which would be used to finance bailouts of European countries facing the debt crisis.
The CAD closed higher against the USD, after reports showed that consumer prices in Canada rose more-than-expected in October.
Commodities Trading Review
In Asia, crude oil for January delivery is trading 0.3% or 0.33 lower at $97.34 per barrel.
On Friday, crude oil for December delivery fell 1.4% or $1.41 to expire at $97.41 per barrel. This came amid speculation that the reversal of the Seaway pipeline would not be enough to eliminate a surplus in the US Midwest.
Crude oil lost value amid speculation that a slowdown in the global economy would curb energy demand.
Gold for immediate delivery is trading 0.1% lower today, at $1,722.75 per ounce.
Gold for December delivery rose 0.3% or $4.90 to settle at $1,725.10 per ounce on Friday. This came amid mounting concerns about the Eurozone debt crisis spurred investment in the precious metal as a safe haven.
A fall in the dollar against the euro also supported gold prices.
Financial Trading News
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'Crude Oil Spread Betting Market Falls on Fears Over Seaway Pipeline Reversal' edited by ETX Capital, updated 21-Nov-11
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