Europe and Britain
Investors' urge to end the last day of the first quarter on a positive note helped the London FTSE, as gains in defensive sectors underpinned the market. But the day also marked the fifth consecutive quarterly decline for the FTSE 100, the longest bear run since the index was introduced in 1984. The fate of the market in the next quarter depends largely on the U.S. economy. On its own, the British economy looks pretty good, but the trouble is the British economy is not what is driving London stocks. Though expected tax and interest rate cuts should underpin equities, continued weakness in the U.S. economy may outweigh them.

In Paris, stocks were generally higher on Friday finishing off a week - and quarter - with modest gains driven by news of further consolidation in the financial sector. Though gains in financial stocks helped the CAC 40, they did little for Frankfurt where the DAX slumped anyway on Friday.

On the quarter, all three indexes tracked here are down significantly from the year end, although they showed some signs of recovering from the sharp declines earlier in March.

Asia
Tokyo stocks ended the week lower as the market lost momentum and pared early gains on the last trading day of the Japanese fiscal year. Lingering concerns about slowing economic growth have dented market confidence, and the surge in stock prices created by government instigated buying has petered out. However, analysts believe the underlying direction for equities is upwards, as the start of the new fiscal year on April 1 is likely to see Japanese and foreign institutions move into the market next week. The Nikkei 225 fell 36 per cent from a year ago, partly because of a reshuffle of its constituents in April 2000. It's down 5.7 percent so far in 2001.

The only Asian index tracked here that is above its year end value was the South Korean Kospi, which had lost about 50 percent of its value in 2000. The Australian all ordinaries, Hong Kong Hang Seng, Singapore straits and the Nikkei are down when compared with the end of 2000. Worries about the U.S. slowdown have dominated investors' thoughts. And slowing local growth, primarily caused by slowing exports to the United States, hasn't helped either.

Americas
The quarter ground to a close, with markets here continuing to be very volatile. The Mexican Bolsa is the only North American index tracked here that finished the first quarter on the positive side. However, the Toronto Stock Exchange composite, which outperformed most indexes for most of 2000, is taking the brunt of the technology decline because of the weighting of Nortel in the index. The Nasdaq continues to tumble, while until recently the Dow had managed to maintain its equilibrium. Worldwide, investors continue to watch U.S. markets for direction. This is especially true for technology stocks, which have been brutalized this year.

Introduction   •   Global Stock Market Indexes   •   Recap of Global Markets   •   Currencies   •  Indicator Scoreboard

The Bottom Line   •   Looking Ahead