The commodity currencies weakened against other major currencies in the Asian session on Friday, as most Asian stock markets traded lower, despite the broadly positive cues from global markets overnight, as some markets retreated from recent highs with traders eager to book some profits. Some traders also remain worried recent hotter-than-expected U.S. inflation data could...
The British pound weakened against other major currencies in the European session on Friday. The pound fell to more than a 2-month low of 0.8590 against the euro, a 1-month low of 1.2585 against the U.S. dollar and a 3-day low of 190.73 against the yen, from early highs of 0.8568, 1.2675 and 192.24, respectively....
UK retail sales steadied in February after rebounding at the start of the year, as poor weather lead to a reduction in footfall, data released by the Office for National Statistics showed on Friday. Retail sales were unchanged from January, when they expanded by a revised 3.6 percent in January. Sales were forecast to fall...
Business confidence in Germany improved in March on stronger expectations and better assessment of the current conditions, survey results from the ifo Institute showed on Friday. The business sentiment index rose more-than-expected to 87.8 from an upwardly revised 85.7 in February. The score was forecast to climb to 86.0. Moreover, this was the highest score...
European stocks ended on a mixed note on Friday with investors largely staying on the sidelines, or taking some profits after recent record highs. In addition to digesting the latest batch of economic data, markets reacted to some earnings and other corporate updates. Although markets found support from recent dovish comments from central banks, investors...
After a weak start, the Switzerland market briefly moved higher around mid morning on Friday, but retreated and spent the rest of the day\'s session in negative territory. Amid a lack of fresh triggers, investors chose to take some profits. The benchmark SMI ended down by 51.67 points or 0.44% at 11,651.99, the day\'s low....
A day after posting a record closing high, the Canadian market turned weak as stocks drifted lower on Friday due to profit taking. Communications, real estate, technology and consumer discretionary stocks were among the prominent losers. The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended down by 77.44 points or 0.35% at 22,009.82, after scaling a low of...
The U.S. dollar gained in strength on Friday thanks to recent strong economic data, and on bets several other central banks will likely cut interest rates before the Federal Reserve. The Fed maintained its forecast for three interest rate cuts this year, but the timing of the first rate cut remains undetermined. The chances of...
Japan will on Monday see leading index figures for February, highlighting a modest day for Asia-Pacific economic activity. The index is expected to slip 0.6 percent on month to a score of 109.9 after rising 2.1 percent to 110.2 in the previous month. Malaysia will release February numbers for consumer prices; in January, inflation was...
The South Korea stock market on Friday snapped the two-day winning streak in which it had surged nearly 100 points or 3.9 percent. The KOSPI now rests just beneath the 2,750-point plateau and it may remain stuck in neutral on Monday. The global forecast for the Asian markets is mixed, with strength from technology stocks...