European stocks closed near a one-week low yesterday and the dollar slipped against the euro after data showed more Americans tapping unemployment benefits, muddying the outlook for when the US central bank might raise interest rates.
But while the number of people filing new claims for US unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose last week, those claims remained near pre-recession levels.
Investors are trying to gauge the mood of the Federal Reserve before policymakers meet next week. The timing of an expected rate hike in the United States has become a central question for global markets.
“The numbers are slightly disappointing and the market reaction suggests that investors are a little nervous ahead of the Federal Reserve’s next meeting,” said Keith Bowman, equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.
The data moved the euro further off 14-month lows against the greenback reached earlier this week. The dollar hovered near six-year highs against the yen.
“This week is the beginning of markets being concerned more broadly that however much the Fed would like its normalisation to be smooth and serene, that it may end up being more harsh on asset markets than had previously been anticipated,” said Steven Englander, global head of G10 foreign exchange strategy at CitiFX in New York.
The euro was last up 0.09 per cent, at $1.2928, while Europe’s broad FTSEurofirst 300 index dropped 0.13 per cent at 1,383.94.
The dollar was last up 0.07 per cent against the yen, at 106.89, despite having moved lower earlier in the day.
The Dow Jones industrial average was down 45.45 points, or 0.27 per cent, to 17,023.26, the S&P 500 was down 4.59 points, or 0.23 per cent, to 1,991.1, and the Nasdaq Composite was unchanged.
The MSCI world equity index, which tracks shares in 45 nations, fell 0.75 points or 0.18 per cent, to 427.41.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.5343 per cent from 2.536 per cent late on Wednesday.
Spot gold prices fell $10.24 or 0.82 per cent, to $1,238.16 an ounce. Gold futures were last down 0.5 per cent, at $1,239.1 an ounce.
Brent crude was last down $0.33, or down 0.34 per cent, at $97.71 a barrel. US crude was last up $0.81, or up 0.88 per cent, at $92.48 per barrel.