Stocks hit record high, sterling endures rough week

A woman is walking by an electronic stock board of a securities firm in Tokyo. World stocks touched record highs on Friday (Dec 20), as trading wound down before the year-end holidays. - AP

SINGAPORE: World stocks touched record highs on Friday (Dec 20), as trading wound down before the year-end holidays, while the British pound was heading towards its worst week for more than two years amid renewed worries over how Britain will leave the European Union.

MSCI's world equity index, which tracks shares in 49 countries, gained a smidgeon to 561.31, bettering a record scaled on Thursday as optimism infused markets after the United States and China agreed an initial trade deal.