LONDON, 30 September 2003 — The euro climbed sharply against the dollar yesterday, getting to within a whisker of 1.16 dollars on the back of heavy technical purchases, analysts said.
Around 14:00 GMT the European single currency, which had been at 1.1437 dollars two hours earlier, suddenly climbed to a peak of 1.1593 dollars before slipping back slightly.
Meanwhile, European shares lost ground yesterday, with London’s FTSE 100 index off 0.35 percent at 4,142.7 points. In Paris the CAC 40 lost 0.87 percent to 3,188.71 points, while the Frankfurt DAX was off by 1.27 percent at 3,282.65 points in late trades.
In New York, stocks chugged higher at midday yesterday as investors took advantage of shares made cheaper by last week’s slump and fund managers spruced up portfolios for the end of the quarter.
The technology-laced NASDAQ Composite Index rose 18 points, or 1.05 percent, to 1,810. The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average added 74 points, or 0.80 percent, to 9,387. The broader Standard & Poor’s 500 Index advanced 8 points, or 0.83 percent, to 1,005. Asian share prices closed mostly weaker yesterday. The Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Nikkei-225 index trimmed earlier losses but still closed down 88.87 points at 10,229.57, a four-week low.
In Seoul, the composite index closed down 1.34 points or 0.19 percent at 696.06, off a low of 688.07 and a high of 698.77.
In Hong Kong, the key Hang Seng index lost 148.87 points to close at 11,141.28, off a low of 11,104.34 and a high of 11,256.06. The Philippine Stock Exchange composite index dropped 3.49 points to 1,310.36, having traded between 1,305.03 and 1,313.63. The Bombay Stock Exchange’s 30-share index rose 19.48 points to close at 4,402.05.
Oil prices rose. The price of reference Brent North Sea crude oil for November delivery rose 31 cents per barrel to $26.95. New York’s benchmark light sweet crude November contract gained 30 cents to $28.46 in morning trading.