Global shares retreated on Friday although export-related Tokyo stocks got a boost as the dollar strengthened against the Japanese yen.
U.S. futures edged lower while oil prices rose nearly $1.
Investors are awaiting the release of a comprehensive report on the jobs market from the U.S. Labor Department later Friday. Economists expect it to show U.S. hiring slowed to 160,000 jobs last month from 199,000 in November.
The hope is that the economy will remain just strong enough to stave off recession without reversing progress in taming inflation. The Federal Reserve is watching to see if current trends continue as it weighs the possibility of cutting interest rates.
Rate cuts give a boost to prices for stocks and other investments, while also relaxing the pressure on the economy and financial system.
“Sentiments are back on some wait-and-see, given that we may have to see a substantial weakening of the U.S. labor market to justify market pricing of a rate cut,” said Yeap Jun Rong, market analyst at IG.
France’s CAC 40 declined nearly 0.7% to 7,401.13. Germany’s DAX slipped 0.5% to 16,532.37, while Britain’s FTSE 100 dropped 0.6% to 7,677.77. The futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 0.1%.
In Asian trading, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 added 0.3% to finish at 33,377.42 as major manufacturers like Toyota Motor Corp. advanced thanks to a weakening of the yen, which helps Japanese exporters by boosting the value of their overseas earnings.
The yen has weakened in recent days amid speculation that the Bank of Japan might go slowly on changing its lax policy stance as it assesses the impact of Monday’s major earthquake in central Japan. Friday in Asia, the U.S. dollar rose to 145.01 Japanese yen from 144.63 yen. The euro fell to $1.0919 from $1.0947.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng shed 0.7% to 16,535.33, while the Shanghai Composite skidded 0.9% to 2,929.18.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.1% to 7,489.10. South Korea's Kospi lost 0.4% to 2,578.08.
In other trading, benchmark U.S. crude added 82 cents to $73.01 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 73 cents to $78.34 a barrel.
