Stocks in Asia were seen trading mixed on the last day of the trading week as the Japanese yen boosted the nation’s equities higher.
Tokyo’s Topix index added 0.87% to 1,404.04 points, while the Japanese Nikkei 225 index rallied 0.94% to 17,403.22 points during the early trading hours.
The Japanese yen weakened to the lowest in three days against the US dollar, trading around 118.24 yen on Friday versus 117.60 yen on Thursday. Read more
On Friday, gold prices were seen declining, dragged lower by the firmer US dollar. Meanwhile the spotlight continues to focus on oil prices after OPEC decided to keep its oil production target.
Futures for the yellow metal declined 1.07% to $1,183.80 per ounce, while futures for silver slumped 3.01% to $16.050 per ounce.
The Dollar index, which measures the strength of the greenback against a basket of major currencies, rose 0.60% to 88.1350 points. Read more
Oil prices were seen extending losses on Thursday on speculation that OPEC will refrain from cutting productions as the 12-member group meets in Vienna.
The energy market in Europe was seen falling on Thursday as the Italian oil and gas company; Eni declined 1.22% to €16.65 per share, while in France, the oil giants Total was down 0.90% to €47.41 per share. In Spain, Respol fell 0.76% to trade at €18.28 per share and Royal Dutch Shell slid 0.80% to 2,347.50 pence in London. Read more
US equities were seen climbing amid the economic reports released on Wednesday. The market was muted in celebration of Thanksgiving holiday on Thursday.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 index added 0.3% to 2,072.83, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.07% to 17,827.69 and Nasdaq technology rose 0.61% to close at 4,787.32 on Wednesday. Read more
Stocks on Wall Street cleared early gains and closed just above the flatline after the Department of Commerce released an upbeat third-quarter US GDP report, followed by a drop in the nation’s consumer confidence for November.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 index closed 0.11% lower to 2,067.18, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 0.02% lower to 17,815.20 and Nasdaq technology index gained 0.07% to 4,758.25 at the time of writing. Read more
