World Stock Markets Still Down

Stock markets across the world have closed down on the whole, with lingering volatility and unrest from last week still obvious through the day’s trading.

Earlier today, the Nikkei shed extensive losses in response to Friday’s US trading, whereas other European and American markets maintained shaky, but not disastrous, trade over the day off the back of some seriously negative trading at the end of last week.

With news that French output had increased and that inflation within the UK looks firmly under control, analysts could be forgiven for having anticipated some green trading in Europe.

However, from news that Countrywide Financial, the biggest US mortgage lender, is to lose an additional 12,000 staff and the apprehension carried over from trade on Friday, trading throughout Europe has remained gloomy over today.

In London, the leading FTSE 100 stock exchange closed down by 57.10 points on the day to settle at 6134.1 on the bell. In Germany, the ever pessimistic Frankfurt DAX 30 exchange echoed similar sentiments, losing 61.19 points close at 7375.4.

In Paris, the situation was no different from Germany, with losses of 43.67 points on the CAC exchange leading to a close of 5386.4, despite marginally positive trading through the Dow Jones in the latter part of this afternoon, rounding off a rather uninspiring day of stock market trading.

By the time the Dow did crawl into green territory, markets across Europe were closed so as not to take account of this change. Whilst the Dow Jones gained a marginal 14.47 points on the day’s trading to rest at 13127.9, the smaller NASDAQ exchange was in keeping with the day’s overall trend losing 6.59 points to finish at 2559.1.

Analysts are expecting a slight bounce on European markets through early trade tomorrow to reflect the positive close on the Dow Jones, although it remains to be seen how the indexes will fare beyond that point.

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