A roundup of trading on major world markets:
NEW YORK – Wall Street has fallen sharply, capping off its worst week since the dark days of August, hurt by a sell-off in technology companies, while department stores dropped on concerns about the upcoming holiday shopping season.
Dow component Cisco, which dropped 5.8 per cent after it gave a flimsy forecast, citing a slowdown in orders and weak spending outside the US, was the second-biggest drag on the S&P and the Nasdaq and pulled down shares of tech heavyweights including Apple and Facebook.
Disappointing reports from department store chains hit retailers. And, data showed US retail sales rose less than expected in October, suggesting a slowdown in consumer spending.
“The market got to up within about a per cent of its previous record high. It got overbought, but we really didn’t get the follow-through we wanted from the small caps,” Alan Gayle, senior investment strategist at RidgeWorth Investments in Atlanta said.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 1.16 per cent to finish at 17,245.24 points and the S&P 500 lost 1.12 per cent to 2,023.04. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.54 per cent to 4,927.88.
LONDON – European stock markets closed down as traders reacted to weak eurozone data and lingering concerns over China.
Equities were weighed down by a slump in commodity prices caused largely by weaker Chinese demand and additional downward pressure came from increased expectations of a long-awaited US rate hike in December.
With oil diving to a two-month low and commodity markets continuing to be buffeted, Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at Oanda trading group, on Friday said: “It’s worth noting that the market was primed for some form of correction following a good five weeks for investors.”
At the close, London’s benchmark FTSE 100 index had lost 60.40 points, or 0.98 per cent, to 6,118.28.
In the eurozone, Frankfurt’s DAX 30 index ended off 74.23 points, or 0.69 per cent, at 10,708.30.
“Slower eurozone GDP growth … will intensify already strong belief that the ECB will deliver more stimulus at its December policy meeting,” said Howard Archer, chief European economist at research group IHS Global Insight.
HONG KONG – Energy companies from Australia to China have tumbled as falling commodities prices stoked fears over the global outlook, with Asian stock markets tracking hefty losses in Europe and New York.
Prices have halved since peaking above $US100 in June last year, hit by tepid demand in a weak global economy, and a supply glut in the face of near-record output levels.
Adding to the pain is a growth slowdown in China, the world’s biggest energy user, which has also affected other commodities such as copper and iron ore.
Among Asian energy firms, Sydney-listed miner BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto gave up almost two per cent while Origin was seven per cent lower.
The Nikkei lost 100.86 points, or 0.51 per cent at 19,596.91; the Hang Seng shed 492.78 points, or 2.15 per cent, to 22,396.14; and the Shanghai Composite fell 49.08 points, or 1.29 per cent, to 3,746.24.
WELLINGTON – The S&P/NZX50 dropped 34.93 points, or 0.6 per cent, to 5989.03.
