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US markets close low while it is positive in Europe

17 November 2008 13:05 (UTC +04:00)

The Dow fell 337.94, or 3.82 per cent to 8,497.31, while the broader S&P 500 slid 38 points, or 4.17 per cent to 873.29. The NASDAQ was down 79.85, or 5 per cent to 1,516.85.
Looking to the financial sector, The Wall Street Journal reported that Citigroup was set to cut another 10,000 jobs. The banking giant has already let go of 23,000 employees. Citigroup shares managed to edge 0.7 per cent higher.
Bank of America and JP Morgan dropped 7.3 per cent and 4 per cent respectively.
Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo were down 4.7 per cent, 8.9 per cent and 1.2 per cent.
Meanwhile, embattled mortgage giant Freddie Mac reported a US$25 billion quarterly loss and asked the government for US$13.8 billion in federal funds. Freddie Mac shares lost 8.2 per cent, while Fannie Mae slumped 12.9 per cent.
American Express slid 3.8 per cent, MasterCard was down 2.3 per cent and Visa gave up 0.4 per cent.
General Electric, which has a large financing unit, gave up 5 per cent.
Elsewhere, General Motors managed to gain 2 per cent on hopes that government officials would put together an aid package to rescue the embattle auto industry.
General Motors has lobbied hard for aid during the last couple of weeks. Over the weekend, GM CEO Rick Wagoner warned that the collapse of the auto industry would be devastating for the US economy.
Ford dropped 5.3 per cent on Friday.
Oil futures retreated amid persistent concerns about the global growth outlook. NYMEX light crude oil for December delivery fell US$1.20 to settle at US$57.04 a barrel.
Exxon Mobil and Chevron both slid 2.3 per cent, while ConocoPhillips gave up 3.6 per cent. Oil field engineering and services firms Halliburton and Schlumberger fell 5.5 per cent and 5.7 per cent respectively.
European stocks ended the week on a positive note with key markets across the continent making gains. The FTSE 100 closed 63.76, or 1.53 per cent higher at 4,232.97.
Franceâ€™s CAC 40 added 22.01, or 0.67 per cent to 3,291.47, while Germanyâ€™s DAX gained 60.72, or 1.31 per cent to 4,710.24.