Wall St and European markets fall

NEW YORK - US stocks fell Friday as investors took profits from recent gains and fretted about the global economic recovery following India's surprise interest rate hike.

After opening with small gains, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 37.19 points, 0.35 per cent, to finish at 10,741.98, snapping an eight-session rally that had brought the blue-chip index to an almost 18-month high.

The tech-rich Nasdaq composite shed 16.87 points, 0.71 per cent, at 2,374.41 while the broad-market Standard & Poor's 500 index retreated 5.92 points, 0.51 percent, to 1,159.90.

The major indices spent almost the entire session in negative territory and closed better than lows hit in the final hour of trade amid the quarterly expiration of futures and options contracts, known as the "quadruple-witching" hour.

LONDON - The financial turmoil gripping Greece and the eurozone's struggles to forge a common position on the crisis weighed on European stock markets Friday, with most exchanges ending in negative territory.

The London FTSE 100 index managed to defy the trend, closing with a gain seven points or of 0.13 per cent at 5,650.12, its best showing since late June 2008.

FRANKFURT - The Dax lost 41.85 points, or 0.69 per cent, to end the session at 5,982.43 points.

PARIS - The CAC 40 fell 32.45 points, or 0.82 per cent, to 3,925.44.

TOKYO - Japanese share prices closed 0.75 per cent higher Friday, recouping some of the losses from the previous session, as traders moved back into exporters.

The benchmark Nikkei-225 index rose 80.69 points to 10,824.72.

The broader Topix index of all first section shares increased 8.14 points, or 0.87 per cent, to 948.93.

HONG KONG - Hong Kong stocks rose 0.19 per cent Friday in line with regional markets after a rally in the afternoon.

The benchmark Hang Seng Index was 40.15 points higher at 21,370.82.

WELLINGTON - Telecom shares sank to new a low on the New Zealand sharemarket today, while rises in Fletcher Building, Contact Energy and other leaders helped carry the market higher.

The benchmark NZX-50 closed up 9.72 points, or 0.302 per cent, at 3,230.40.

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