European shares slipped on Friday on concerns over rising inflation and surging coronavirus infections, while investors were uncertain over how weak US payroll data would influence the Federal Reserve’s plans for tightening policy.
DUBLIN
The Irish index of shares ended the week down marginally lower, mirroring the declines seen across Europe. The Dublin market lost 0.25 per cent to close at 8,595.
Bank of Ireland continued its positive run, adding 1.89 per cent to close at €5.50. AIB was also up, by 0.78 per cent, over the session, ending the week at €2.31, while Permanent TSB lost 1.8 per cent to €1.62.
Building stocks were mixed. CRH lost ground on the day, closing at €46.88, as investors remained cautious over construction stocks. And Kingspan finished 0.63 per cent down at €101.85.
But housebuilder Glenveagh Properties was almost 1 per cent higher, at €1.22, regaining some of the ground that it lost on Thursday. Rival Cairn gained slightly, ending at €1.166.
LONDON
The FTSE 100 rose on Friday to end the first week of the year higher on support from heavyweight banking and mining stocks.
Barclays and HSBC Holdings were among the top boosts on the index, tracking gains in benchmark bond yields. Miners Anglo American and BHP Group were the top gainers on strong metal prices.
UK bond yields rose for a fourth straight week and bank stocks recorded their biggest weekly rise in nearly 14 months after the Bank of England's first rate hike in mid-December.
The UK’s benchmark index this week outperformed its European peers and the domestically focussed midcap index, with both the Stoxx 600 and FTSE 250 ending the first week of the year lower. The domestically focussed mid-cap index declined 0.3 per cent.
Aston Martin jumped 6.6 per cent after sales to dealers in 2021 surged 82 per cent, even as the British luxury automaker forecast lower-than-expected annual adjusted core earnings.
C&C Group fell 2.7 per cent after the drinks maker's December sales lagged expectations due to pandemic-related curbs in Britain and Ireland.
EUROPE
The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed 0.4 per cent lower, and lost 0.3 per cent this week.
The travel and leisure sector sank 1.6 per cent and was among the worst performers for the day as countries continue to grapple with an Omicron-led rise in Covid-19 cases.
The Stoxx 600 has fallen 1.6 per cent since Wednesday as expectations of higher interest rates battered heavyweight technology stocks. The sector was the worst performer this week, losing around 4.5 per cent.
Gains in some chipmakers helped limit some losses in the technology sector. Italy's STMicroelectronics, rose more than 3 per cent after posting quarterly revenue above its own estimates.
German chipmaker Infineon Technologies gained 1.7 per cent, taking cues from South Korea's Samsung Electronics that posted upbeat fourth-quarter results.
Deutsche Bank climbed 1.8 per cent to a more than six-month high. The German lender's finance chief told Handelsblatt in an interview that the firm is confident it will reach a key profitability target this year.
Dutch insurer Aegon rose more than 4 per cent to the top of the Stoxx 600, after it announced a €50 million share buyback.
Meanwhile, Airbus dropped 0.8 per cent after reports that Qatar Airways is seeking more than $600 million in compensation from the planemaker over surface flaws on A350 jetliners. Airbus has said that while it acknowledges technical problems, there is no safety issue.
NEW YORK
US stocks dropped and Treasury yields advanced on Friday as investors digested mixed-message payroll data and its potential impact on Federal Reserve policy in the final session of a roller-coaster first trading week of the year.
US employment rose by a less-than-expected 199,000 jobs last month as the impact of a resurgent pandemic bites, well below the 400,000 forecast by economists, but data for November was revised higher. The unemployment rate dropped to 3.9 per cent, underscoring tightening labour market conditions.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 94.64 points, or 0.26 per cent, to 36,141.83; the S&P 500 lost 30.4 points, or 0.65 per cent, to 4,665.65; and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 183.79 points, or 1.22 per cent, to 14,897.07. – Additional reporting: Reuters
