admindelegates due to spend the weekend debating would-be currency wars, equities have had a quiet start this morning . . . as markets take pause for thought,” said analyst Matt Basi at trading group CMC Markets UK.
On Friday, London’s FTSE 100 index of top companies fell 0,04 percent to 6 324,14 points, as traders also digested news that British retail sales sank 0,6 percent in January from December. Markets had forecast a 0,6 percent gain.
Elsewhere, Frankfurt’s Dax shed 0,11 percent to 7 622,55 points and in Paris the Cac 40 added 0.31 percent to 3 680,93.
“The FTSE is just in the red as investors continue to contemplate the recent strength in equities so far this year,” said Angus Campbell at traders Capital Spreads.
“Many are sitting on their hands ahead of the G20 summit that gets underway today.”
Madrid’s IBEX 35 index shed 0,09 percent to 8 240,70 points and Milan’s FTSE MIB rose 0,13 percent to 16 565,20.
In foreign exchange deals, the dollar fell to 92,57 yen from 92,79 yen late in New York on Thursday, and the euro dipped to US$1,3340 from US$1,3454. Gold prices eased to US$1 625,88 an ounce from US$1 646 on the London Bullion Market.
Finance ministers and central bankers from the G20 leading economies meet in Moscow later on Friday, as Tokyo comes under attack from Europe over its new approach to monetary policy, which has pushed down the yen.
The Bank of Japan, under pressure from the new government, last month unveiled a plan for unlimited monetary easing and a target for 2 percent inflation.
The moves, which had been expected, added to the yen’s weakness and sparked charges of manipulation from around the world and fuelled fears of a currency war where rival nations drive down their currencies to gain a trade advantage.
However, many analysts contend that other nations have also sought to push down the value of their currencies via monetary easing measures.
For example, many emerging nations have long argued that the US Federal Reserve’s monetary easing measures have in recent years weighed on the dollar and artificially boosted their own currencies, thereby hurting exports.
“The bottom line is that, in some guise or another, every major economy is in the process of devaluing their currency currently, so the net effect may turn out to be negligible,” said Basi.
“In real terms the Japanese are not doing anything new — or anything that isn’t being replicated in other economies. They’re just being more direct about it and more clear in their intentions,” he added.
Japan’s Asahi daily reported that the G20 would warn members off any competitive currency devaluations, and cited a copy of a draft joint statement.
European stocks had fallen on Thursday following news that the eurozone recession deepened in the final three months of last year.
The recession in the 17-nation eurozone deepened sharply in the fourth quarter of 2012 as the debt crisis continued to sap growth and confidence, official data showed.
The eurozone economy shrank 0,6 percent in the three months to December, which compared with a contraction of 0,1 percent in the previous quarter.
Analysts said the latest figures were worse-than-expected, with the major economies also now dragged down, including Germany, the bloc’s powerhouse. — AFP.
Online Reporter