Asia Markets Mixed, Europe Declines, Crude Oil At $72.5 - Global Markets Today While US Was Sleeping

On Thursday, January 4th, the U.S. stock markets closed mixed, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite continuing the downward trend.

In economic data, U.S. private businesses added 164,000 workers in December, surpassing expectations and a previous month's gain. Initial jobless claims dropped to 202,000, below market estimates. The S&P Global US Services PMI was revised to 51.4, while the S&P Global composite PMI edged down to 50.9 from an initial estimate of 51.0.

Most S&P sectors experienced declines, with energy leading the drop, however, health care and financial sectors defied the general downtrend.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased slightly by 0.03%, closing at 37,440.34. The S&P 500 was down 0.34% to 4,688.68, and the Nasdaq Composite declined 0.56%, ending the trading session at 14,510.30.

Asia Markets Today

• Japan's Nikkei 225 closed Friday's trading session higher by 0.40% at 33,377.42, led by gains in the Mining, Chemical, Petroleum & Plastic, and Glass sectors.
• In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 declined 0.07%, ending at 7,489.10, led by losses in the IT, Metals & Mining and Resources sectors.
• China's Shanghai Composite was down 0.85% to 2,929.18, while the Shenzhen CSI 300 slipped 0.54%, closing at 3,329.11.
• Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was down 0.70%, concluding the day at 16,498.00.

Eurozone at 06:00 AM ET

• The European STOXX 600 index was down 0.90%.
• Germany's DAX declined 0.75%.
• France's CAC slipped 1.07%.
• The U.K.'s FTSE 100 traded lower by 0.88%.

Commodities at 06:00 AM ET

• Crude Oil WTI was trading higher by 0.47% at $72.53/bbl, and Brent was up 0.24% at $77.76/bbl.
• Natural Gas declined 2.02% to $2.763.
• Gold was trading lower by 0.16% at $2,046.85, Silver climbed 0.06% to $23.200, and Copper slipped 0.58% to $3.8223.

US Futures at 06:00 AM ET            

Dow futures were down 0.20%, S&P 500 futures slid 0.24%, while Nasdaq 100 Futures declined 0.35%.

Forex at 06:00 AM ET

The U.S. Dollar Index gained 0.32% to 102.75, USD/JPY was up 0.41% to 145.22, and AUD/USD rose 0.36% to 1.4964.

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