London’s FTSE 100 closed flat again on Friday, dragged by miners and energy stocks as gains in banking shares capped losses.
The blue chip FTSE 100 closed just three points ahead, 7,022, while the domestically focused FTSE 250 was also a little higher, closing at 22,683.
Meanwhile, US stocks climbed up on Friday as investors brushed off a stronger-than-expected inflation reading, as both the Dow and S&P 500 indexes clinched their first weekly gain in the past three weeks.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 61 points, or 0.18 per cent, to 34,525, the S&P 500 gained 3 points, or 0.07 per cent, at 4,203 and the Nasdaq Composite added 11 points, or 0.08 per cent, at 13,747.
On Monday, Asia-Pacific stocks traded mixed after China’s official manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index decreased slightly. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell over 300 points by noon, while Hang Seng was down 145 points. Shanghai Composite also fell slightly at around 0.2 per cent.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 is seven points down, while MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan traded fractionally higher.
Indian indices started the week slightly lower amid mixed global cues. BSE Sensex was hovering around 51,450, while the Nifty 50 index was above 15,400.
Additional reporting by agencies
