By IFCMarkets
Dollar strengthens on strong data
US stock market extended gains on Friday as the US economy created above-expected 304,000 new jobs in January. S&P 500 advanced 0.1% to 2706.53, closing 1.6% higher for the week. Dow Jones industrial rose 0.3% to 25063.89. The Nasdaq however lost 0.3% to 7263.87 weighed by Amazon’s 5.4% drop on weak earnings outlook. The dollar strengthening continued as ISM manufacturing index’s final reading for January came in at above expected 56.6. 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, inched up less than 0.1% to 95.55 and is higher currently. Futures on US stock indexes point to mixed openings today.
FTSE 100 still paces European indices gains
European stocks finished mostly higher on Friday. The EUR/USD turned higher while GBP/USD slid with both reversing currently. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index gained 0.3%. The DAX 30 added 0.7% to 11180.66. France’s CAC 40 gained 0.5% and UK’s FTSE 100 rose 0.7% to 7020.22.
Australian stocks lead Asian indices gains
Asian stock indices are mixed today in thin trading as many Asian markets head into Lunar New Year holidays. Nikkei rose 0.46% to 20883.77 with yen continuing its slide against the dollar. Mainland China markets are closed for the week for Lunar New Year celebrations, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index is 0.02% lower. Australia’s All Ordinaries Index rose 0.48% with the Australian dollar extending losses against the greenback as homebuilding permits fell sharply for the second month in a row in December.
Brent up
Brent futures prices are higher today supported by OPEC cuts and sanctions on Venezuela. Prices ended higher on Friday after Baker Hughes reported active oil rig count fell by 15 to 847 last week: Brent for April settlement jumped 3.1% to close at $62.75 a barrel Friday, gaining 1.8% for the week.
Market Analysis provided by IFCMarkets
Free Reports:
Get Our Free Metatrader 4 Indicators - Put Our Free MetaTrader 4 Custom Indicators on your charts when you join our Weekly Newsletter
Get our Weekly Commitment of Traders Reports - See where the biggest traders (Hedge Funds and Commercial Hedgers) are positioned in the futures markets on a weekly basis.
Note:
This overview has an informative and tutorial character and is published for free. All the data, included in the overview, are received from public sources, recognized as more or less reliable. Moreover, there is no guarantee that the indicated information is full and precise. Overviews are not updated. The whole information in each overview, including opinion, indicators, charts and anything else, is provided only for familiarization purposes and is not financial advice or а recommendation. The whole text and its any part, as well as the charts cannot be considered as an offer to make a deal with any asset. IFC Markets and its employees under any circumstances are not liable for any action taken by someone else during or after reading the overview.
