A roundup of trading on major world markets:
NEW YORK – Wall Street was closed for the Martin Luther King public holiday.
LONDON – Europe’s leading stock markets shrugged off a wave of ratings downgrades, including that of France’s triple-A status, while the euro remained essentially unchanged on Monday.
Steep losses were posted in London, however, by US-based cruise ship operator Carnival, the owner of a luxury liner that ran aground late on Friday off the Italian coast with the loss of at least six lives.
London’s benchmark FTSE 100 index of top shares closed with a modest increase of 0.37 per cent to 5,657.44 points, however, while Paris’ CAC 40 added 0.89 per cent to 3,225 points after a positive short-term bond sale.
Frankfurt’s DAX 30 jumped by 1.25 per cent to 6,220.01 points as investors cheered news that international ratings agency Standard & Poor’s had maintained Germany’s hard-won AAA credit rating.
Milan was up by 1.4 per cent and Madrid was essentially unchanged.
In foreign exchange trades, the euro was unchanged at $US1.2677.
HONG KONG – Asian markets fell and the euro remained under pressure after Standard & Poor’s cut the credit rating of nine European nations, including France and Austria’s triple-A status.
The news brought the eurozone debt crisis back to the forefront with traders looking ahead to a crucial week in the region as Greece struggles to come to an agreement with creditors over its repayments, raising fears it could default.
Sydney lost 1.16 per cent, or 49.9 points, to finish at 4,145.9, Tokyo fell 1.43 per cent, or 121.66 points, to 8,378.36, while Seoul ended 0.88 per cent lower, or 16.41 points, at 1,859.27.
Hong Kong closed down 1.0 per cent, or 192.22 points, at 19,012.22 while Chinese shares finished 1.71 per cent lower, or 38.39 points, at 2,206.19.
Taipei lost 1.09 per cent, or 77.92 points, to 7,103.62 despite Beijing-friendly President Ma Ying-jeou being handed a second term in weekend elections, a result that came as a relief to the United States and China.
WELLINGTON – New Zealand shares fell to near a four-week low after a mass downgrade of European nations’ credit ratings sapped investors’ appetite for bigger returns.
The NZX 50 Index fell 16.82 points, or 0.5 per cent, to 3210.63, the lowest level since December 22.