Weekend markets: Shares fall as G20 summit fails

Sharemarkets fell after the G20 summit failed to reach any resolution on Europe’s debt crisis.

No G20 country committed to help seed the eurozone's bailout fund. They resolved only to continue talking about providing additional firepower through the International Monetary Fund.

Meantime, the future of Greece's government remained in doubt after the prime minister, George Papandreou, backtracked on his referendum plan for the latest EU bailout.

His leadership now faces a vote of no confidence in the Parliament.

In Italy, the IMF has been asked to help monitor overhaul that country’s plans and national accounts.

The political chaos was too much for investors on Wall Street, where a positive job report showed growth in the US economy and online deals company Groupon had a successful float.

It surged 31% in its trading debut after the initial public offering rose above the expected range of $US16-18.

The US added fewer jobs than expected in October but hiring in previous months was revised sharply higher.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 61.15 points, or 0.5%, to 11,983.32 at the close (9am NZ time). It was the first weekly loss since September.

The S&P 500 index shed 0.6%, to 1253.24 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.4%, to 2686.15.

Other markets: Europe lower, Asia higher
European shares finished broadly lower ahead of the planned Greek confidence vote and as traders monitored Italy's fiscal situation.

Other markets: Europe lower, Asia higher
European shares finished broadly lower ahead of the planned Greek confidence vote and as traders monitored Italy's fiscal situation.

The Stoxx Europe 600 index shed 1% to end at 239.76, its first loss in three sessions. For the week, the index declined 3.7%.

France's CAC-40 index fell 2.3% to 3123.55 with Alcatel-Lucent slumping 17% after a revenue warning.

In Germany, the DAX 30 index fell 2.6% to 5973.57 and the UK's FTSE 100 index slipped 0.3% to 5527.16.

Anglo American slipped 0.8% after saying it will acquire the Oppenheimer family's 40% interest in diamond company De Beers for $US5.1 billion. The deal will increase Anglo American's current 45% stake in De Beers to up to 85%.

Earlier in the trading day, Asia stocks rallied, though most major indexes ended the week in the red.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 3.1% to 19842.79 but lost 0.9% for the week.

The Shanghai Composite gained 0.8%, its fourth consecutive daily gain, to 2528.29 and rose 2.2% over the week.

A 1.9% rise in Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average to 8801.40, on the heels of a Thursday holiday, trimmed the week's loss to 2.8%.

Korea's Kospi advanced 3.1% to 1928.41, but edged down 0.1% on the week, its first weekly loss in four.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index jumped 2.6% on the day to 4281.10 but fell 1.7% on the week, while India's Sensex rose 0.5% on Friday to 17562.61 but fell 1.4% over the week.

Commodities: Oil steady, gold down
Crude futures rose after monthly jobs data offered a mixed picture of US employment.

Light, sweet crude for December delivery settled up 19USc, or 0.2%, at $US94.26 a barrel in New York, after rising as high as $US94.93.

Brent crude on the ICE futures exchange traded $US1.14 higher at $US111.98 a barrel.

Gold futures extended their early losses, under pressure from a stronger dollar and falling equities as traders focused on Europe's unsettled debt crisis.

The gold contract for November delivery lost $US8.90, or 0.5%, to settle at $US1755.30 an ounce in New York. The front-month contract settled 0.5% higher for the week.

Currencies: Dollar heads higher
The US dollar headed higher against the euro and other major currencies.

The euro was at $US1.3758 compared with $US1.3822 late on Thursday.

The dollar was at ¥78.17 from ¥78.06. The UK pound bought $US1.6032 from $US1.6045, while the dollar fetched 0.8876 Swiss franc from 0.8779 franc.