Monex BMO Securities: Euro Markets Bolstered as Base Metals Soar, Yen Drops

NEW YORK - May 16, 2016 - PRLog -- Crude and Nickel increases toward the end of this week, winning back some of its early losses, caused European stocks to rise towards the tail end of the week. The Yen reached its monthly low as Japanese markets rallied, while a tough mayor winning a presidential election in the Philippines had a positive effect on the nation's peso.

The general market feeling is hardly positive though. Lower-than-expected gains in the world's leading economic nations hurt global stocks badly. Industrial productivity for both France and Germany were down, affecting the BCI which saw a steady decline during most of the week after encouraging signs last month.

"Concerns regarding macroeconomic growth have re-surfaced," said Anthony Russell, Senior Vice President with Monex BMO Securities. "We expect stocks to recover though, as they always do. This is not going to deter long term positions."

After an impressive run of form that produced its strongest gains in a year, the Malaysian Ringgit slumped 0.8% against the dollar-- the largest decrease among the main global currencies -- as lower crude prices painted a sour picture for the nation's trade. South Korea's Won dropped 0.55% as the Philippine Peso gained 0.72%.

The Yen declined 0.4% versus the Greenback to its lowest point since last month while the AUD gained by nearly half a percentage point.