And still we hope for the best (18-04-2008)

Thursday’s session ended flat for Wall Street, as technology shares ended lower before the release of earnings from Google Inc., while the broader market dealt with Merrill Lynch Co. Inc. losses ending slightly higher, as they were on par with analysts’ expectations. 

Asian markets on the other hand were largely flat to lower as investors took profits from the previous days’ rally, offloading mainly financials and resource stocks. I Japan the financials sector was mixed with Mitsubishi ending up by 0.6%, Sumitomo losing 0.86% and Mizuho adding a slim 0.43%. 

Oil prices that had been hovering at around $115 per barrel drifted towards $114 a barrel on Friday, as the possibility of an economic slowdown in China raised concerns of decreased demand. The dollar was worth around 102.46 yen and continued to remain weak against the euro, but turned up to over 103 yen after Citigroup released results that were not as dire as the markets had expected. 

European markets had been gaining since the opening bell, but extended their gains after Citi’s announcement. 

Back in the U.S., futures are up as the markets interpreted Citi’s information as positive, especially since no additional plans for job cuts or raising capital have been announced, while the bank reported better-than-expected top line growth.

Source ISFM