A roundup of trading on major world markets:
NEW YORK – US stocks were largely flat overnight, closing mixed on concerns about talks in Greece aimed at reaching a deal with private creditors to lower its debt.
The Dow Jones industrial average slipped 11.66 points or. 0.1% to 12,708.82 on Monday, while the S&P 500 index was up 0.62 points or 0.05% at 1,316.00. The Nasdaq composite fell 2.53 points or 0.1% to 2,784.17.
Creditors are in negotiations with the Greek government to reduce its debt burden.
LONDON – Hopes that Greece will reach a deal with private creditors on lowering its debt – despite a delay in talks between Athens and banks’ representatives – supported European markets on Monday and sent the euro up to three-week highs above $US1.30.
The deal being thrashed out would lead to private creditors swapping their old Greek bonds for ones with a 50 per cent lower face value.
The new bonds would also have much longer maturities, pushing repayments decades into the future, and a much lower interest rate than Greece would now have to pay on the market.
Issues over the interest rates on the bonds lie behind the delay. However, the Greek government and representatives for the private creditors insist the talks have not broken down and that they are moving closer to a final deal.
Expectations of a breakthrough have heartened investors and boosted assets that are considered riskier. The euro was the main beneficiary, climbing a further 1.3 per cent to $US1.3039, its highest level since January 4.
In Europe, the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares closed up 0.9 per cent at 5,782.56, while Germany’s DAX rose 0.5 per cent to 6.436.62. The CAC-40 in France ended 0.5 per cent higher at 3,338.42.
HONG KONG – The Asian markets were closed for the Lunar New Year.
WELLINGTON – Trading on the New Zealand sharemarket was even quieter than usual for a Monday, with trading rooms in Wellington closed for the annual anniversary holiday.
The NZX50 index was up 0.56 per cent, to 3295.01 on volume of barely $34 million.
Within the index, 23 stocks rose, 13 fell, and 14 were unchanged.
