London (AFP) – Europe’s main stock markets climbed Friday, as oil prices retreated after a volatile week’s trading in reaction to Middle East war developments. Frankfurt led the way with a gain of 0.7 percent in midday deals, while London and Paris also rose. Asian stock markets closed mixed, as Japan’s bond yields hit multi-year highs. This followed the benchmark US 10-year Treasury yield rising to its highest level since 2007 on Thursday.
There are growing concerns about governments’ high debt levels, forcing them to pay more for their borrowing. Central banks’ interest rates are also on the rise again amid elevated inflation caused primarily by high energy costs. Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey on Friday hinted that the BoE could follow the European Central Bank and US Federal Reserve in hiking rates.
As for European equities, they “enjoyed a strong boost at the end of the trading week as investors regained their risk appetite,” noted Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell. Sentiment was helped also by “a seemingly amicable meeting” between US President Donald Trump and China counterpart Xi Jinping. However, the nations’ extension of a trade truce by two months until January was far less than the two years the Chinese had hoped for. “US-China trade risks remain…(with) issues over tariffs, agricultural purchases, rare earths, and technology restrictions unresolved,” said MUFG market strategist Lloyd Chan.
On the corporate front, shares in Facebook parent Meta bounced back to their summer 2025 highs, riding a wave of investor excitement about Muse, the social media giant’s AI agent which presents an opportunity to generate revenue beyond advertising. The stock gained 4.5 percent on Thursday after jumping more than 11 percent Monday, its biggest single-day rise since April 2025. At around $778, the share price has recovered from a late-March low around $525 a share, which came after two court rulings over the impact of its social networks on young people’s mental health.
– Key figures at around 1100 GMT –
Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 1.0 percent at $105.55 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 1.7 percent at $92.97 per barrel
London – FTSE 100: UP 0.3 percent at 10,708.26 points
Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.1 percent at 8,085.36
Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.7 percent at 25,431.55
Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 1.3 percent at 66,364.20 (close)
Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.0 percent at 24,510.09
Shanghai – Composite: closed for holiday
New York – Dow: DOWN 0.3 percent at 51,349.98 (close)
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 157.79 from 158.85 on Thursday
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1396 from $1.1376
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3247 from $1.3220
Euro/pound: DOWN at 86.05 pence from 86.07
© 2024 AFP
