Spread Betting Markets Snapshot

• FTSE 100 slid 0.7% to close at 5,612.3.
• FTSEurofirst 300 index eased 0.5% or 5.0 points to end at 1,008.7.
• DJIA edged up 0.3% to close at 12,392.7. NASDAQ inched 0.1% higher to end at 2,676.6. S&P 500 ticked up 0.2% to settle at 1,280.7.
• Nikkei 225 index is trading 0.4% higher, at 8,423.2.
• In Asia, crude oil for February delivery is trading 0.4% or 39 cents higher at $101.70 per barrel.
• At 0400 BST today, the GBP is trading 0.1% higher against the USD at $1.5473, 0.1% higher against the EUR at €1.2112, and flat against the JPY at ¥118.84.
• For more on trading stock market indices see spread betting on indices.

UK Spread Betting Markets

• UK markets ended on a mixed note yesterday, with the FTSE 100 index closing lower, as the French and German leaders failed to present a comprehensive plan to tackle the Eurozone sovereign debt crisis.
• Among miners, Antofagasta declined 2.8%, after Citigroup downgraded its rating on the stock to “Sell” from “Neutral”, while Xstrata, Anglo American and Kazakhmys lost between 0.5% and 1.6%.
• Essar Energy, the top decliner on the FTSE 100 index, dropped 5.1%, amid reports of an investigation of some of its senior executives by the Indian Central Bureau of Investigation.
• GlaxoSmithKline lost 4.1%, as investors were disappointed by the results of its new drug trial.
• InterContinental Hotels Group rose 1.8%, as Deutsche Bank upgraded the stock to “Buy” from “Hold”.
• FTSE 100 slid 0.7% to close at 5,612.3, while FTSE 250 edged up 0.1% to end at 10,251.1.
• National Grid rose 2.4%, after UBS added the stock to its “Buy” list.
• InterContinental Hotels added 1.8%, as Deutsche Bank upgraded the stock to “Buy” from “Hold”.
• Essar Energy lost 5.1%, amid reports of an investigation of some of its senior executives by the Indian Central Bureau of Investigation.
• GlaxoSmithKline dropped 4.1%, after its trial drug, Relovair, failed to meet expected results.
• Banking stocks, Barclays and Lloyds Banking Group plummeted 4.5% and 3.4%, respectively, amid concerns over the outcome of the Franco-German meeting.
• Antofagasta fell 2.8%, after Deutsche Bank downgraded the stock to “Hold” from “Buy”.
• Vedanta Resources declined 2.8%, in line with a fall in base metal prices.
• For more on trading UK shares see spread betting on UK shares.

UK Forex Futures Trading Review

• At 0400 BST today, the GBP is trading 0.1% higher against the USD at $1.5473, 0.1% higher against the EUR at €1.2112, and flat against the JPY at ¥118.84.
• The EUR is trading marginally lower against the USD at $1.2773, amid optimism that European leaders are taking measures to resolve the debt crisis, as the German chancellor and the IMF’s managing director meet in Berlin
• The EUR is trading 0.1% lower against the JPY at ¥98.11.
• The CHF is trading higher against the USD and the EUR, after Swiss National Bank head, Hildebrand, announced his resignation at a news conference yesterday.
• Yesterday, the EUR ended higher against the USD, after the German and French leaders stated that they made progress on plans to toughen budget rules across the Eurozone to resolve debt crisis.
• The CAD closed higher against the USD, after Nanos Research poll showed that Canadian consumer confidence rose in the fourth-quarter from a two-year low on optimism about real estate prices and the global economy.
• The GBP / EUR closed lower after leaders of Germany and France stated that revised budget rules for Eurozone nations might be done a month early. In addition, Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets reported that its index of UK job security fell to the lowest since the measure began in 2004.
• For more on trading the forex markets see forex spread betting.

Commodities Spread Betting Markets

• Gold for immediate delivery is trading 0.3% higher today, at $1,616.29 per ounce.
• Gold for February delivery dropped 0.5% or $8.70 to settle at $1,608.10 per ounce yesterday. This came as demand for the safe haven asset waned following comments from French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel which eased concerns about the Eurozone sovereign debt crisis.
• In Asia, crude oil for February delivery is trading 0.4% or 39 cents higher at $101.70 per barrel.
• Yesterday, crude oil for February delivery declined 0.3% or 25 cents to settle at $101.31 per barrel, amid demand worries, after Germany industrial output declined 0.6% in November and as concerns eased that Iran would block the Strait of Hormuz.
• For more on commodities trading see commodities spread betting.