Econintersect: In apparent growing indifference to the unrest in Egypt, major global markets generally advanced on Friday. This despite the rise of benchmark Brent crude to over $100 a barrel. Sharp oil price increases historically recess economies.
Reuters also reported that the Venzuela Oil minister forecast the price of oil would rise to over $200 per barrel if the Suez Canal closed. There is some dispute over the quantities of oil which actually traverse the Suez by ship, as several pipelines are also used to transport oil across Egypt. But pipelines are as vulnerable as canals.
The major Europe markets were up – the DAX closed at 7216.21 up 0.31%, the FTSE 100 stood at 5997.38 up 0.23%, and the CAC 40 ended the day at 4047.21 up 0.26%. In Asia, the Hang Seng ended at 23908 up 1.81% and the Shanghai exchange closed at 2799 up 0.31%.
Sources: Reuters and Yahoo Finance
