By FX Empire.com
Confidence was restored in markets throughout Friday, equities gained while the dollar slipped against the Euro following the latest political developments in the euro zone, especially after tension eased in both Italy and Greece, in addition U.S economy broke the silence today with the latest estimate of consumer confidence for November, fueling hopes regarding the threatened economic recovery.
Earlier, Italy’s Senate approved on debt-reduction plan in a vote today, paving a way for an interim government that will be mostly headed by former European Union Competition Commissioner Mario Monti to take the steer in debt-laden Italy. Italy’s approval on the austerity measures helped reignite confidence in markets and clear the blurred political situation that been erupting the Italian soil.
If truth be told, optimism reignited among the markets on Friday, as investors grew more confidence that Italy will able to carry out a credible fiscal consolidation. While in Greece, the former ECB president Lucas Papademos sworn in as the new Greek Prime Minister on Friday, paving a way for the unity government to take place in Greece. Meanwhile, investors will be focused on Greece as the Greek government must endorse the 130 billion euro bailout to avert default.
Optimism was also seen in the United States on Friday after the Thompson Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary index of consumer confidence accelerated to 64.2 from 60.9 for November, the highest since June. American consumers seem to be more comfortable regarding economic conditions in times Europe’s debt crisis is mostly threatening the global economic recovery. Equities gained following the release of the sentiments gauge, which actually climbed more than forecasted in November.
The U.S. dollar dropped significantly against a basket of major currencies on Friday, trading around 76.82, compared with the opening level at 77.55. The Euro posted a strong gain following almost a one-month low against the U.S dollar amid optimism over Italy, where the EUR/USD pair traded at $1.3754, compared with the opening level at $1.3609.
Moreover, The British Pound stood upon the U.S Dollar, where the GBP/USD pair traded around $1.6055, compared with the opening level at $1.5938, and the U.S. dollar slipped against the Japanese Yen, as the USD/JPY pair trades around 77.18, compared with the opening level at 77.66.
American equities stretched yesterday’s rally on Friday following cheerful American sentiments and optimism over Italy, where the DJIA gained 2.2 percent to trade around 12156 and the S&P 500 Index added 2.0 percent to trade around 1264, while the NADAQ Composite Index rose 2.0 percent to 2679., Data as of 13:03 New York Time.
European equity benchmarks restored this week’s loss and closed higher on Friday, as the FTSE 100 Index added 1.85 to trade around 5545.38, DAX Index gained 3.22 to 6057.03 and the CAC 50 Index surged 2.76 to trade around 3149.38.
Gold prices were higher on Friday to trade now around $1785.77 an ounce after opening at $1751.71 an ounce, while crude oil prices build up and gained to trade around $98.55 a barrel after opening at $97.63.
Originally posted here
