Forex Week In Review – 2/1/2016

Last week saw all of the major markets regain some ground and the oil price consolidate earlier gains. Friday marked the final trading session for January, so it is a convenient point to look back over the fortunes of the month.

In Europe over the course of the week, the FTSE was up by 3.1%, it closed at 6083.8, but fell by 2.5% on the month; the Dax ended at 9798.1, up by 0.34% on last week’s close, but falling by 8.8% in January; the CAC was up by 1.9% to end the session at 4417, but it slipped by 4.8% over the month.

The Dow ended the week up by 2.3% to close at 16466, however, it lost 5.5% in January. The Nasdaq composite index ended up by 0.5% over the course of the week at 4614, but it shed 7.9% over the course of the month.

The Nikkei 225 ended the week’s trading up by 3.3% to end the session at 17518, losing 8% in January.

Currency Markets Review 

On the currency markets last week the big news was the Bank of Japan’s decision to introduce a negative interest rate. The Euro enjoyed the best of the trading. The Dollar was stronger against Sterling last week closing at $1.4183 to the Pound, a gain of 0.9% on the week and 3.8% over the month. The Greenback fell against the Euro last week by 0.15% to close at $1.0833 to the €, but January saw it rise by 0.23% against the Euro. The Dollar was stronger against the Japanese currency, closing at 121.1 Yen to the Dollar, making a gain of 2.3% during the week and 0.38% on the month.

The Euro was stronger against the Yen ending at 131.2, a gain of 2.4% over the course of the week and 0.15% in January. It made ground against Sterling last week, rising by 1.1%; the close saw one £ buying €1.3092, a gain of 3.6% over the month.

The Euro now buys 1.108 CHF, a gain of 0.9% on the week and 1.9% since the start of the year.

Commodities Market Review 

On the commodities market, the price for Brent crude ended at $35.99 per barrel, a rise of 11.8% over the course of the week’s trading, but, significantly, it ended the month down by 3.5%. The value of gold was higher last week, closing at $1118 per ounce, a gain of 1.6% on the week and 5.6% in January.