A roundup of trading on major world markets:
NEW YORK – The Dow and S&P 500 have edged to fresh records after the US economy added 214,000 jobs in October and the unemployment rate fell.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 19.46 points (0.11 per cent) on Friday at 17,573.93, while the S&P 500 edged up 0.71 (0.03 per cent) to 2,031.92. Friday marked the third straight record close for the two indices.
The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index fell 5.94 (0.13 per cent) to 4,632.53.
The October jobs growth came in below the 235,000 expected by analysts. But the Labor Department revised upward by a total of 31,000 the number of net new jobs gained in the previous two months.
The report also said the unemployment rate fell one-tenth of a percentage point to 5.8 per cent, its lowest level since July 2008.
Analysts said the report marked another month of job growth above 200,000, but was not strong enough to prod the Federal Reserve to shift from its plan to keep interest rates low well into 2015.
LONDON – European stock markets diverged after a mixed report on US jobs while the euro recovered ground against the dollar after a strong week for the greenback.
The Paris CAC 40 dropped 0.89 per cent to 4,189.89 points on Friday, while in Frankfurt the DAX 30 fell 0.91 per cent to 9,291.83, but London’s benchmark FTSE 100 index added 0.25 per cent to 6,567.24 points thanks to gains by mining stocks.
Madrid slumped 1.32 per cent and Milan shed 0.99 per cent.
The markets focused on mixed US jobs data that showed the jobs count came in below the 235,000 expected by analysts while the unemployment rate fell one-tenth of a percentage point to 5.8 per cent, its lowest level since July 2008.
The euro climbed to $US1.2423 from $US1.2371 late in New York on Thursday.
HONG KONG – Asian markets were mixed following another record close on Wall Street, while the Nikkei resumed its surge as a brief rally by the yen fizzled out.
Traders were also buoyed by comments from the head of the European Central Bank that it was ready to widen its stimulus program to support the eurozone economy.
Tokyo on Friday rose 0.52 per cent, a day after easing for the first time this week on profit-taking. The index has soared more than 10 per cent since last Wednesday, helped by the Bank of Japan’s surprise announcement that it will widen its monetary base. The Nikkei added 87.90 points to finish at 16,880.38.
Seoul added 0.18 per cent, or 3.39 points, to 1,939.87 and Sydney added 0.78 per cent, or 43.0 points, to close at 5,549.1.
Shanghai fell 0.32 per cent, or 7.69 points, to 2,418.17 and Hong Kong slipped 0.42 per cent, or 99.07 points, to 23,550.24.
WELLINGTON – The NZX 50 Index rose 15.38 points, or 0.3 per cent, to a record close of 5418.99.
