Europe and Britain
All three indexes tracked here ended on the plus side despite profit warning tremors early in the week. But when some second quarter earnings reports from technology companies were better than expected, optimism soared and the markets roared into positive territory for the week. However, the indexes still have a long way to go to make up recent losses.

Asia
Equities ebbed and flowed with earnings warnings and reports from the United States. U.S. results are used as a barometer for domestic company earnings, especially in Japan and Korea. A huge portion of Asian profits stem from overseas sales to America and to Europe. Only the Australia all ordinaries, up 1.2 percent, seemed impervious to the international mood. Japan broke about even, inching up 0.4 percent after barely escaping a slip below the 12,000 mark. Some investors attribute the Nikkei's summer erosion to waning foreign optimism over the planned restructuring by Japan's Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.

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

The Bottom Line   •   Looking Ahead