On Friday European stocks and US index futures fluctuated between gains and losses before a report that may show the jobless rate in America rose to the highest level in 25 years. Asian shares advanced.
HSBC Holdings Plc and Deutsche Bank AG declined before a report that may show unemployment in the US jumped to 8.5 per cent. Novo Nordisk A/S tumbled 11 per cent after the drugmaker's experimental diabetes shot received a split recommendation from a US advisory panel over concerns that it may increase the risk of thyroid cancer. Renault SA and Daimler AG led automakers higher as Credit Suisse Group AG upgraded the industry to “overweight”.
European shares shook off early losses to turn flat by mid-morning with banks rebounding and commodities tracking higher metal and crude prices. Oil stocks gained after crude rose 0.6 per cent with BP and Royal Dutch Shell up 0.3 per cent and one per cent, respectively. The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares was up 0.02 per cent.
European shares rose nearly five per cent on Thursday after world leaders agreed to pump $1.1 trillion into the global economy through extra funding for groups like the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Japanese stocks extended a fourth weekly gain on optimism efforts to halt the global recession are taking effect, helping send the yen to a five-month low. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average added 0.3 per cent. The Topix index rose 0.6 per cent. The Nikkei climbed 1.4 per cent on the week, while the Topix gained 0.8 per cent, a fourth-straight advance for both.
US stocks looked set to build on the week's stellar rally, as investors hoped for tentative signs that the rising tide in unemployment was finally reaching a peak.
Overnight stocks surged as changes to mark-to-market accounting rules signaled light at the end of the tunnel for toxic assets, although some analysts warned that the changes may create confusion among investors who would not know how exposed the banks are. The buoyant mood among investors was further lifted by strong factory orders and the $1-trillion international pledge from the G20 summit.
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