FTSE 100: 6,685.69 ↓17.31 ↓0.26%
FTSE 250: 15,888.21 ↓ 103.56 ↓ 0.65%
Despite finishing the week marginally lower, on fears of escalating tensions in Ukraine, the FTSE 100 index of leading UK company shares posted a weekly rise.
The US Secretary of State, John Kerry, earlier called on Russia to de-escalate tensions in Ukraine.
Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s has downgraded sovereign Russian debt to BBB- credit status, barely above ‘junk’ bond status.
The situation in Ukraine outweighed some decent retail sales figures in the UK. According to the Office for National Statistics, these edged higher in March, up 0.1% compared to the previous month.
US Dollar: £1 buys $1.68030
Euro: £1 buys €1.21440
Japanese Yen: ¥171.63500
Brent Crude Oil Futures $/barrel: 109.49
Forex Gold Index(pm fix) $/oz: 1301.25
Silver Index $/oz: 19.66
UK 10 Year Benchmark Gilt Yield: 2.65%
