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Currency Markets the dollar wallowed near a one-week low against a basket of currencies on Friday after upbeat economic data failed to lift Treasury yields, with underlying concerns about U.S. trade policy capping greenback attempts to bounce. The greenback was 0.1 percent higher at 113.340 yen after losing 0.8 percent overnight. The euro was steady at $1.0674 after climbing 0.7 percent the previous day. Sterling extended modest overnight gains to rise 0.1 percent to $1.2502. The Australian dollar added 0.1 percent to $0.7699 and the New Zealand dollar was steady at $0.7207. The dollar index against a group of major currencies stood flat at 100.470 after hitting 100.410 overnight, its lowest since Feb. 9.
Commodities Markets oil prices edged up on Friday, lifted by a report that producer club OPEC could extend an output cut aimed at reining in a global fuel supply overhang. Brent crude futures were trading at $55.76 per barrel, up 11 cents from their last close. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures, were up 10 cents at $53.46 per barrel. Spot gold rose 0.7 percent to $1,240.86 an ounce, and is up about 10 percent from a mid-December low. Silver was up 0.5 percent at $18.07, after reaching a three-month high at 18.13. Platinum was 0.6 percent lower at $1,009.45. Palladium was up 0.3 percent, at $791.75 an ounce, after tapping $794.90, its highest since Jan. 24.
US Equity Markets the Dow Jones Industrial Average scored its sixth straight record high on Thursday, but just barely, while the S&P 500 edged lower due to declining energy stocks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended up 0.04 percent to close at 20,619.77. The S&P 500 had lost 0.09 percent to 2,347.22 and the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.08 percent to 5,814.90. Wells Fargo fell 0.73 percent after Credit Suisse downgraded its stock to "neutral" from "outperform". Cisco Systems rose 2.38 percent after its quarterly report late the day before, helping push the Dow into positive territory by the close of trading after spending most of the day with a loss. NetEase jumped 14.08 percent following the Chinese online game developer's revenue beat.
Bond Markets Japanese government bonds edged up on Friday, taking their cues from rising prices for U.S. bonds while super-long debt fell slightly after the results of the Bank of Japan's buying underscored lingering selling demand. The 30-year yield rose 0.5 basis point to 0.910 percent, just below its near one-year high of 0.915 percent touched last week. The 10-year JGB yield was flat at 0.090 percent .
Asian Equity Markets Japan's Nikkei index fell on Friday morning with the market wary of a stronger yen and financials weakened as U.S. bond yields fell after comments by a senior U.S. Federal Reserve official were viewed as relatively dovish. The Nikkei fell 0.6 percent to 19,238.73 in midmorning trade. For the week, the benchmark index has fallen 0.7 percent so far. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan pulled back 0.1 percent, on track to end the week up 1.3 percent, its fourth straight weekly gain. The CSI 300 index lost almost 0.1 percent after gaining as much as 0.5 percent, on track for a weekly advance of 0.7 percent. Hong Kong stocks 0.3 percent, but are still poised to close up almost 2 percent for the week.
