Investors weighed earnings results and waited for the outcome of Sunday’s talks in Doha between most key oil producers.
United States
US stocks edged lower in quiet trading Friday as energy companies retreated along with the price of oil. The Dow Jones industrials and Nasdaq were down 0.2 percent and the S&P slipped 0.1 percent on the day. For the week, the market was propelled higher by quarterly financial results from big banks that were not as ugly as investors were anticipating. For the week, the three indices advanced. Both the Dow and Nasdaq were 1.8 percent higher while the S&P added 1.6 percent.
Ministers from major oil-producing countries met this weekend in Qatar to discuss production policies. The price of oil has risen in recent weeks in part on hopes that those countries will be able to strike a deal that will help relieve a global glut. News mid-Sunday afternoon (US EDT) indicated that OPEC and non-OPEC producers failed to reach a deal to freeze oil output. Attempts by some of the world’s biggest oil producers to freeze output ended without a deal after Saudi Arabia insisted Iran should be part of any agreement. Talks in Doha aimed at achieving the first global oil deal in 15 years, which had appeared to be on course earlier in the day, collapsed late on Sunday night (in Doha) as ministers failed to overcome opposition from Riyadh, which had hardened its stance in recent days
Utility companies, the best performing group of stocks on the market this year, made the largest gains Friday. Investors are being drawn to their relatively high dividend payouts because rising bond prices are lowering the yields investors can earn from bonds. Occidental Petroleum and EOG Resources declined. Edison International and NextEra Energy advanced. Citigroup said Friday its first quarter profit declined 27 percent on weak results from its consumer bank and trading businesses, but the bank’s net income and revenue were greater than expected. Newmont Mining and Freeport-McMoRan were higher.
March industrial production fell 0.3 percent last month, after a 0.1 percent drop in February. Those figures suggest that American manufacturers are still struggling with weak overseas growth, the strong dollar and sluggish consumer and business spending at home.
These data reflect observations at 4:00 PM US ET Friday. Gold at the afternoon London fixing was down US$6.75 to US$1,227.10. Copper futures were down 0.1percent to US$2.16. WTI spot crude was down US$1.14 to US$40.36. Dated Brent spot crude was down 74 US cents to US$43.10. The US dollar was down against the yen, euro, pound and the Canadian and Australian dollars. However, it was up against the Swiss franc. The Dollar Index was down 0.25 percent. The yields on both the US Treasury 30 year bond and the 10 year note were down 4 basis points to 2.56 percent and 1.75 percent respectively.

Europe
Stocks retreated at week’s end after increasing earlier in the week. Investors turned more cautious before the upcoming meeting of major oil producers in Doha. The FTSE was down 0.3 percent, the SMI slipped 0.1 percent and both the CAC and DAX lost 0.4 percent. However, on the week, the indices advanced. The FTSE was up 2.2 percent, the SMI gained 2.5 percent and the CAC and DAX both added 4.5 percent.
Crude oil prices pulled back on reports that Iranian Petroleum Minister may not attend the Sunday meeting in Doha. Investors are now skeptical about a breakthrough deal to freeze production at January levels. As Iran has rejected calls to cut production, Saudi Arabia made it clear that it won’t sign any deal unless other major oil producers, including Iran, participate in the deal.
Volkswagen, Daimler and BMW finished down on the day. In Paris, car parts maker Faurecia dropped 3 after reporting sluggish first quarter growth and reiterating its forecast of 1 percent to 3 percent sales growth for 2016. Renault and Peugeot retreated. Carrefour climbed after the supermarket chain reported higher quarterly sales, reflecting robust sales in Brazil, Spain and Italy.
In London, Man Group jumped after the hedge fund manager reported net inflows of US$500 million in the first quarter and said it is benefiting from its diversified business model against the backdrop of challenging market conditions. Floorcovering manufacturer Victoria retreated after saying it is no longer in talks to buy Lano Carpets. Acal advanced after it said its earnings for fiscal 2016 will be “slightly” ahead of expectations. AB InBev gained in Brussels. The Belgian brewer, which is seeking approval for its proposed $105 billion takeover of rival SABMiller, has pledged not to eliminate any jobs in South Africa after completing the transaction. SABMiller finished higher in London.

Asia Pacific
Asian stocks were mixed in lackluster trade after a strong earthquake hit southwestern Japan and a slew of Chinese data failed to inspire investors. China’s first quarter gross domestic product met expectations and was up 6.7 percent from the same quarter a year ago. It was the country’s slowest quarterly growth in seven years. March retail sales grew 10.3 percent on the year while industrial production managed to increase just 6.8 percent. The Shanghai Composite was 0.1 percent lower after hitting a three-month high in the previous session. The Hang Seng also retreated 0.1 percent. For the week, the former added 3.1 percent while the latter was 6.4 percent higher.
The Nikkei was down 0.4 percent on profit taking after three straight days of gains. While the yen held weaker, media reports that some of Japan’s biggest firms have shut down operations in southern Japan following a magnitude 6 earthquake pushed investors into a defensive mode ahead of the weekend. On the week, the Nikkei jumped 6.5 percent. IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde said on Thursday that currency market intervention by Japan would be “legitimate” to avoid “very destructive volatility.” In another development, Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda used the word “excessive” to describe recent yen movements. Automakers Honda Motor, Nissan and Toyota slid after recent sharp gains. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial, Inpex and JFE Holdings declined. Security software maker Trend Micro rallied after discovering two critical flaws in the Windows build of QuickTime.
The S&P/ASX was up 0.8 percent while the All Ordinaries added 0.7 percent. On the week, the former was up 4.4 percent while the latter added 4.1 percent. Banks ANZ, Commonwealth and Westpac were up while miners were mixed after a recent rally in iron ore prices came to a halt on Thursday. The Kospi slipped 0.1 percent for the day but was up 2.2 percent for the week.

Global Stock Markets

Please remember, the value of investments and the income from them can do down as well as up. Funds that invest in overseas markets may be subject to currency fluctuations. Investments in small and emerging markets can be more volatile than other overseas markets. Reference in this document to specific securities should not be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell these securities, but is included for the purposes of illustration only.
Looking forward*
Central Bank activities

April 21

Eurozone

European Central Bank Monetary Policy Announcement

The following indicators will be released this week…

Europe

April 19

Germany

ZEW Business Survey (April)

April 20

Germany

Producer Price Index (March)

UK

Labour Market Report (March)

April 21

UK

Retail Sales (March)

April 22

Eurozone

Manufacturing, Services & Composite PMI (April flash)

Germany

Manufacturing, Services & Composite PMI (April flash)

France

Manufacturing, Services & Composite PMI (April flash)

Asia/Pacific

April 20

Japan

Merchandise Trade Balance (March)

April 22

Japan

Manufacturing PMI (April flash)

Americas

April 19

United States

Housing Starts (March)

April 20

United States

Existing Home Sales (March)

April 21

United States

Philadelphia Fed Survey (April)

Initial Unemployment Claims (week ending prior Saturday)

Leading Indicators (March)

April 22

Canada

Consumer Price Index (March)

Retail Sales (February)

United States

Manufacturing PMI (April flash)

*Note — all releases are listed in local time.

Source: Fidelity

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