LONDON: Europe’s main stock markets treaded water yesterday, with investors nervous that US leaders have still not agreed a deal to avert the fiscal cliff, dealers said.
London’s FTSE 100 index of leading companies slipped 0.05 percent to 5,958.34 points, while in Frankfurt the DAX 30 edged up 0.05 percent to 7,672.1 points and in Paris the CAC 40 added 0.06 percent to reach its highest close of the year at 3,666.73 points. The Milan market added 0.41 percent and Madrid shares were flat.
In foreign exchange deals, the euro edged up to $1.3227, from $1.3226 late in New York on Wednesday, when it had struck an 8.5-month peak at $1.3308. Gold prices slid to $1,650.50 an ounce on the London Bullion Market, from $1,665.
Wall Street stocks were also mixed in midday trade, as traders shrugged off an upward revision in US economic growth and focused on concerns about the fiscal cliff. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 0.06 percent to 13,244.11 points. The broad-market S&P 500 added 0.06 percent to 1,436.65 points, while the Nasdaq Composite shed 0.09 percent to 3,041.53 points.
Asian markets traded mixed following big gains in the previous session. The yen slipped against the euro and dollar after Japan’s central bank unveiled more huge monetary easing but it held on to earlier gains as traders had mostly expected the new measures. Tokyo fell 1.19 percent on profit-taking after surging to an eight-month high on Wednesday.
But Seoul closed 0.32 percent higher, with the election of conservative Park Geun-Hye seeming to have little effect, although dealers were broadly happy as she favours stability over big change. Shanghai gained 0.28 percent, Sydney was up 0.35 percent and Hong Kong staged a late rally to end 0.16 percent higher. AFP
