US stocks end mostly lower
|Dollar strengthens on strong jobless data
US stock market ended marginally lower on Thursday in a choppy trade. The S&P 500 lost 0.02% to 2650.54. The Dow Jones industrial average however gained 0.3% to 24597.38. Nasdaq composite index slid 0.4% to 7070.33. The dollar strengthening resumed as data showed initial jobless claims fell last week more than initially estimated: the live dollar index data show the ICE US Dollar index, a measure of the dollar’s strength against a basket of six rival currencies, rose 0.1% to 97.08 and is higher currently. Futures on stock indexes indicate lower openings today.
CAC 40 slips the most among European indices
European stocks pulled back on Thursday. The GBP/USD continued climbing while EUR/USDs turned lower as the European Central Bank left key rates unchanged, indicating plans to keep them at current levels through summer 2019. Both are declining currently. The Stoxx Europe 600 index slid 0.2%. Germany’s DAX 30 slipped 0.1% points to 10924.70. France’s CAC 40 lost 0.3% and UK’s FTSE 100 ended less than 0.1% lower at 6877.50.
Nikkei paces Asian indices losses
Asian stock indices pared most of previous session gains today on disappointing Chinese data. Nikkei fell 2% to 21374.83 with yen little changed against the dollar. Chinese indices are also sharply lower as data showed industrial production growth slowed to 5.4% in November, the lowest rate since the start of 2016: the Shanghai Composite Index is down 1.5% while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index is 1.8% lower. Australia’s All Ordinaries Index retreated 1.1% despite Australian dollar turning lower against the greenback.
Brent slips
Brent futures prices are edging lower today as traders try to gauge the impact of slowing Chinese growth on demand. Prices ended higher yesterday on reports Saudi Aramco warned US refiners about lower shipments next month : Brent for February settlement closed 2.2% higher at $61.45 a barrel on Thursday.
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