Proactive Investors brings you a summary of some of the major stories on the Australian Securities Exchange.
Copper and tin soar to new records on U.S. employment data, global demand outlook
Copper pushed well above $10,000 a tonne ($4.58 a pound) to a record high on Friday, driven by encouraging employment data in the United States that backed views of a healthier 2011 demand outlook.
Copper hit $10,100/tonne and closed at $10,050 despite the U.S. data showing a meager 36,000 jobs were created last month. The figures were balanced out by a larger than expected fall in unemployment which has kept the base metals bullish momentum unchanged.
Copper's rally also helped tin rise to a record high at $31,300 a tonne.
Gold prices ended slightly lower Friday as investors digested gold's violent and sudden rally Thursday and the underwhelming report on jobs. The spot gold price traded as high as $1,361 and as low as $1,345.
US stocks finished the week with modest gains on Friday, after the jobs data was released, with the Dow Jones industrial average up by 29 points, or 0.25%, to 12092.
The FTSE 100 crept back through the 6,000 level with utility firms leading the way. By midday, the index was up 19.44 points at 6,002.
The French Cac 40 index was 11 points (0.3%) up at the close of trading, at 4,047, while the German Dax index was 16 points (0.2%) higher at the close, at 7,210.
Japanese shares closed at a two-week high after a planned merger of two steel firms and good corporate profits bolstered traders' confidence.
The benchmark Nikkei ended the day up 1.1%, or 112 points, at 10,543, its highest level since 19 January.
In Australia, the market continues to move closer to psychological 5000 level with the ASX SPI 200 up 8 points at 4852.
The Australian dollar maintained its strength against the greenback, and is currently trading at USD1.011, while remaining strong against other global currencies buying GBP0.62, EUR0.74 and JPY83.2.
