- Prabowo set to lead bolder Indonesia on world stage
- Tampa zoo rushes Chompers the porcupine and others to safety as Milton nears
- Shanghai stocks pare early surge on stimulus worries amid Asia retreat
- New Japan PM to hold talks on ASEAN sidelines
- Record number of climbers chase 14-peak dream in Tibet
- Former South Korea clinic for US 'comfort women' to be demolished
- China holds off on fresh stimulus but 'confident' will hit growth target
- Chiefs battle past Saints to stay unbeaten
- Deal on climate aid hangs in balance at UN COP29 summit
- Royals hit back against Yankees, Tigers maul Guardians
- German suspect in 'Maddie' case faces verdict in sex crimes trial
- Top economic official 'confident' China will hit 2024 growth target
- COP29 fight looms over climate funds for developing world
- Shanghai stocks soar to extend stimulus rally amid Asia-wide drop
- Australia moves to expand Antarctic marine park
- Tragedy of Madrid street sweeper highlights how heatwaves kill
- Survivors wait for aid as Trump's lies help cloud Helene response
- Fleeing Israeli bombs, Lebanon's displaced met with suspicion
- Jila Mossaed, from refugee poet to Swedish Academy
- Will Tesla's robotaxi reveal live up to hype?
- Drugs, people smuggling at heart of Mexico's raging violence
- 'Invisibility' and quantum computing tipped for physics Nobel
- Musk says he is 'all in' on Trump in US election
- Category 5 Hurricane Milton roars towards storm-battered Florida
- Carpenter bomb stuns Guardians as Tigers level series
- Harris, Trump and Biden mark Oct. 7 attacks as US election looms
- Oil prices extend gains on Mideast tensions, Wall Street falls
- US judge orders Google to open Android to rival app stores
- On attacks anniversary, Israel fights 'sacred' multi-front war
- Nobel scientist uncovered tiny genetic switches with big potential
- Grammy-winning Cissy Houston, mother of Whitney, dies at 91
- UN biodiversity summit in Colombia aims to turn words into action
- Georgia Supreme Court reinstates six-week abortion ban
- 'Dark day': Victims mourned around the globe on Oct. 7 anniversary
- On attacks anniversary, Israel fights multi-front war
- Mexican mayor murdered days after taking office
- Intensifying to Category 5, Hurricane Milton targets Florida
- Mission to probe smashed asteroid launches despite hurricane
- Biden, Harris mark Oct. 7 with call for Mideast peace
- Dupont set for Toulouse return after post-Olympic holiday
- French rugby bosses tighten discipline after nightmare Argentina tour
- Oil prices extend gains on Mideast tensions, Wall Street slips
- Visitors to get rare view of Rome's Trevi Fountain
- Europe's asteroid mission Hera launches despite hurricane
- Man City and Premier League both claim victory in legal case
- Deschamps delight as 'light back on' for Pogba after doping ban
- Biden, Harris urge Mideast peace on Oct. 7 anniversary
- Neeskens, tough midfielder in Cruyff's Ajax and Dutch teams
- UN warns world's water cycle becoming ever more erratic
- Oil prices extend gains on Mideast tensions, Wall Street retreats
CMSD | -0.09% | 24.79 | $ | |
CMSC | -0.53% | 24.57 | $ | |
RYCEF | -0.15% | 6.87 | $ | |
NGG | -1.56% | 65.48 | $ | |
GSK | -0.49% | 38.63 | $ | |
RBGPF | 100% | 60.52 | $ | |
SCS | -0.15% | 12.95 | $ | |
BTI | -0.26% | 35.2 | $ | |
AZN | -0.78% | 76.87 | $ | |
RIO | -0.11% | 69.62 | $ | |
BCC | 1.68% | 141.27 | $ | |
JRI | -0.76% | 13.18 | $ | |
VOD | 0.31% | 9.69 | $ | |
BCE | -0.54% | 33.53 | $ | |
RELX | -0.54% | 46.04 | $ | |
BP | 0.78% | 33.14 | $ |
Strong dollar juices European stocks
A strong dollar helped boost European equities Friday, while the euro hit a one-month dollar low before France's presidential election.
US stocks were mostly higher, after ending Thursday with solid gains.
The trading caps a tough week dominated by the US Federal Reserve's hawkish tone in minutes from its March monetary policy gathering, which sent the dollar climbing against its main rivals.
The euro sank to $1.0837 before Sunday's first round French presidential vote, with the unit dented also by European officials' reticence to move as aggressively as the Fed on tackling soaring inflation.
Oil prices rose despite the recent release of nations' strategic reserves to combat recent Ukraine war-driven turmoil over Russian crude supplies.
- Risk appetite returns -
"Today’s positive session for European markets appears to have more to do with the fact that the strength of the US dollar has pushed both the pound and the euro lower, with the pound falling to its lowest levels since November 2020, below the 1.3000 level," said CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson.
Shares in commodities firms have had a boost as commodity prices have risen in recent weeks because Ukraine and Russia are key producers of raw materials.
Financial firms were given a shot in the arm on Friday as investors became more willing to take risks.
"The fortunes of financial stocks have been closely aligned with risk appetite over the last couple of months and we're continuing to see that now," said OANDA analyst Craig Erlam.
"If the economy can weather the storm, they could be in a strong position given how higher interest rates are generally beneficial for them."
The Fed has made clear it intends to act more decisively to rein in 40-year-high inflation by ramping up borrowing costs and offloading bond holdings.
Markets have come under huge pressure this year as the end of ultra-cheap central bank cash, a Covid-fuelled slowdown in China's economic activity, the war in Ukraine and soaring inflation come together in a perfect storm.
However, so far this year the London FTSE 100 index has won more than three percent in value, boosted by heavyweight commodity and oil companies whose share prices have benefited from soaring prices of raw materials.
In contrast, Frankfurt's DAX has shed in excess of 10 percent and the Paris CAC 40 has lost eight percent, hit also by energy security concerns as a result of EU nations' reliance on gas supplies from sanctions-hit Russia.
- Key figures around 1530 GMT -
New York - Dow: UP 0.7 percent at 34,811.40 points
EURO STOXX 50: UP 1.4 percent at 3,855.55
London - FTSE 100: UP 1.6 percent at 7,669.56 (close)
Frankfurt - DAX: UP 1.5 percent at 14,283.67 (close)
Paris - CAC 40: UP 1.3 percent at 6,548.22 (close)
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 0.4 percent at 26,985.80 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 0.3 percent at 21,872.01 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.5 percent at 3,251.85 (close)
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0877 from $1.0879 late Thursday
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3020 from $1.3075
Euro/pound: UP at 83.53 pence from 83.20 pence
Dollar/yen: UP at 124.32 yen from 123.95 yen
Brent North Sea crude: UP 1.0 at $101.61 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.3 percent at $97.32 per barrel
burs-rl/har
O.M.Souza--AMWN