From The Trading Floor: With markets closing at 1:00 today on Black Friday, equities are trading in mixed territory as the plunging price in oil is juxtaposed against the rise in retail stocks
With the main story of the day being OPEC refusing to scale back production of 30M barrels a day, WTI and Brent trade at new lows.
The weather did not seem to stop Black Friday shoppers yesterday, as long queues formed in front of retail stores. The National Retail Federation has forecast that sales in November and December, excluding auto, gas and restaurant sales, will rise 4.1% from the same months last year, up a bit from 3.1% in 2013.
The number of people without jobs in the eurozone rose for the second straight month in October, while the annual rate of inflation fell further below the European Central Bank's target as energy prices tumbled.
Japanese shares gained ground today as a weaker yen and falling oil prices boosted exporters, supporting investor sentiment.
The European Commission has given Belgium, France and Italy until March to bring their budgets in line with legal requirements, saying they were at risk of breaking EU rules. This gives the countries more time to adjust policy before the EU executive decides whether to fine France for missing consolidation targets or put Italy and Belgium under a disciplinary procedure because of their debt
Resistance today looks to be at the 2075 / 2078 level with support at 2068 / 2071
