LONDON, 27 April 2006 — The euro gained slightly against the dollar yesterday as negative sentiment continued to undermine the US currency, dealers said.
In late European trading yesterday, the euro stood at 1.2455 dollars from 1.2431 dollars late on Tuesday in New York. The dollar rose to 114.81 yen, from 114.60 on Tuesday.
The euro was changing hands at 1.2455 dollars against 1.2431 late on Tuesday, 142.90 yen (142.74), 0.6962 pounds (0.6953) and 1.5799 Swiss francs (1.5766).
The dollar stood at 114.81 yen (114.79) and 1.2691 Swiss francs (1.2680).
On the London Bullion Market, the price of an ounce of gold climbed to $635.50 per ounce, from $634.75 late on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, European stock markets closed higher yesterday. The FTSE 100 index of leading shares gained 0.29 percent to 6,104.3 while Frankfurt’s DAX 30 index rose 0.47 percent to 6,107.12 points and the Paris CAC 40 increased 0.32 percent at 5,252.32. The DJ Euro Stoxx 50 index of leading euro zone shares advanced 0.41 percent to 3,887.00 points. Elsewhere in Europe, in Amsterdam the AEX index gained 0.30 percent to 477.47, in Milan the SP Mib added 0.69 percent to 38,341, in Madrid the Ibex-35 climbed by 0.04 percent to 11,925.6 and in Brussels the Bel 20 fell 0.05 percent to 3,928.26.
In New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 70.44 points, or 0.62 percent, at 11,353.69. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index was up 5.07 points, or 0.39 percent, at 1,306.81. The NASDAQ Composite Index was up 2.24 points, or 0.10 percent, at 2,332.54.
Asian stocks rebounded to a sharply higher close yesterday.
Oil fell below $72 a barrel yesterday as refiners in the United States cranked up gasoline output, easing supply crunch worries ahead of the peak demand summer driving season. US crude was down 90 cents at $71.98 a barrel at 1840 GMT, while London Brent futures fell 79 cents to $72.42 a barrel.