MARKET INSIGHT: “All focus will be on the (Japanese) central bank with more easing expected”, Alex Furber of CMC Markets in Singapore said in a note to clients.
Advertisement
As for China, stocks fell, led by resource shares, as commodity prices slipped in response to fresh regulatory trading curbs, hitting already fragile investor confidence. The 0.5 percent growth paled against the previous 1.4 percent.
Against a basket of currencies, the greenback was down at 93.718, while the euro edged up to $1.1357 having amassed a 1 percent gain for the week so far.
Major European stock indexes closed down more than 2 per cent, but United States equities pared some losses by the close after being down as much as 1 per cent.
In Asia, the Nikkei tumbled more than 3.5 percent in Tokyo but the Hang Seng Index managed to close in positive territory after surrendering its morning gains.
Oil prices dropped in Asian deals after hitting fresh 2016 highs for a third day in a row on Thursday on the back of a weak dollar in the wake of a disappointing report on US first-quarter GDP growth.
ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude oil fell after hitting its highest level this year, slipping 14 cents to $45.19 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Gold and silver prices reached their highest since January 2015 on Friday as the Bank of Japan’s decision the previous day to hold off expanding monetary stimulus weighed on stock markets and the USA dollar. Its failure to do so has seen stock markets reverse gains and the yen surge.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 115.5 points, or 0.65 percent, to 17,715.26.
The vicious yen move is likely to raise the ire of policymakers, although a period of consolidation looks likely with Japanese markets shut for a public holiday.
The dollar, for example, is down 2.8 percent at 108.37 yen.
“It’s just a continuation of momentum after the BOJ policy announcement”, said Vassili Serebriakov, currency strategist at BNP Paribas in NY.
The 10-year US Treasury yield was flat on the day at 1.84 per cent, and down around 10 basis points since the Fed’s policy meeting on Wednesday.
Gold futures for June delivery gained 1.3 percent to settle at $1,266.40 an ounce on the Comex in NY, after rallying as much as 1.5 percent.
Advertisement
The selling pressure continued into the European session. U.S. crude was also up 0.5 percent at $46.30, on track for an increase of almost 6 per cent for the week. The Stoxx 600 index of leading European shares is down 1.1 percent at 344.4.
