European markets flat as Wall Street stays shut for Thanksgiving

LONDON - Europe's major stock markets were flat to firmer on Thursday, with the US markets shut for Thanksgiving.

"Equities are positive, but typically quiet," in view of the US holiday, said Accendo Markets analyst, Mike van Dulken.

While London and Frankfurt were both more or less flat at the end of the session, Paris made much stronger gains, buoyed by the release of favorable economic indicators for both France and the wider eurozone, traders said.

Business rose sharply across the eurozone in November, a key survey showed, as job creation hit the fastest pace in 17 years and the economic recovery in Europe gained steam.

Analysts said the rise in the headline readings of the survey by data monitoring company IHS Markit was a confirmation that the eurozone economy was resilient against the shock of Brexit and would mean a banner year for economic growth.

In France, private sector activity rose its highest level in six and a half years.

European markets had "had a little wobble" at the start of the session, following a downbeat session in Asia, said IG analyst Chris Beauchamp.

"The drying up of (trading) volumes over the past 24 hours prompted mini-routs in the FTSE and the DAX, but these seem to have run their course with both indices moving off their lows."

German investor sentiment was subdued amid ongoing political uncertainty following the collapse of talks to form a new coalition government at the weekend.

London was burnt by domestic energy supplier Centrica issuing a gloomy profits warning that sent its share price diving almost 18 percent to 134.30 pence.

Earlier, in Asia, equities were mostly deflated, with Tokyo also shut for a public holiday.

The dollar struggled following the previous day's losses as dovish Federal Reserve minutes rowed back expectations for US interest rate hikes.

While board members at the US central bank will likely lift borrowing costs next month, official records of their October meeting indicate some are increasingly concerned about persistently low inflation as well as high equity prices.

The release of the minutes came after data showing a surprise drop in key durable goods orders, fuelling a sell-off in the greenback across the board.

Expectations that rates would be lifted several times next year -- partly through an improving economy and flagged tax cuts -- helped drive the dollar up over the past year.


KEY FIGURES AROUND 1640 GMT (12:40 a.m. Friday in Manila)


London - FTSE 100: FLAT at 7,417.24 (close)

Frankfurt - DAX 30: DOWN 0.05 percent at 13,008.55 (close)

Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.5 percent at 5,379.54 (close)

EURO STOXX 50: UP 0.3 percent at 3,572.07

Hong Kong - Hang Seng: DOWN 1.0 percent at 29,707.94 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 2.3 percent at 3,351.92 (close)

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: Closed for a public holiday

New York - DOW: Closed for a public holiday

Euro/dollar: FLAT at $1.1848

Pound/dollar: FLAT at $1.3304

Dollar/yen: FLAT at 111.21 yen

Oil - Brent North Sea: DOWN 15 cents at $63.17 per barrel

Oil - West Texas Intermediate: UP 22 cents at $58.24

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Asia stocks tread water as China manufacturing in focus

HONG KONG - Asian stocks were steady in a cautious start on Wednesday after a weak session on Wall Street, while the sterling stumbled as a new poll found British Prime Minister Theresa May's Conservative Party risks falling short of an overall majority in next month's national election.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was flat. Early trade in Australia and Japan was mixed.

China's stock markets are in focus as they reopen after a long weekend with the official survey on manufacturing likely to set the tone for markets there and possibly the rest of the region. The PMI survey, due at 0100 GMT (9 a.m. in Manila), is expected to show factory activity in China expanded at its slowest pace in eight months in May, according to a Reuters poll.

Analysts at ANZ expect the PMI report to influence base metals trading as well.

On Tuesday, US stocks inched lower, with the S&P 500 retreating slightly from a record, as weakness in the energy and financial sectors offset gains in technology shares.

In currency markets, the pound fell to $1.2791, near a one-month low of $1.2775 touched on Friday. The pound also slipped to 0.8738 pound per euro, near Friday's eight-week low of 0.8750.

New constituency-by-constituency modelling by YouGov showed the Conservative Party might lose 20 of the 330 seats it holds while the opposition Labour Party could gain nearly 30 seats, The Times said.

The dollar fell to two-week lows against the safe-haven yen as investors turned cautious amid political worries in Europe as well as weaker stock and commodity markets after a long US holiday weekend.

The dollar fell to near two-week low of 110.665 yen and last traded at 110.85 yen.

In commodities, oil prices remained soft, as concerns lingered about whether the extension of output cuts by OPEC and other producing countries will be enough to support prices.

US crude futures slipped about 0.1 percent to $49.61 a barrel. Global benchmark Brent was flat at $51.84 per barrel.

Gold edged lower to $1,262 an ounce.

source: news.abs-cbn.com