LONDON: Europe’s main stock markets extended gains yesterday on growing expectations of an interest rate cut by the ECB following poor German economic data.
After sharply rising the day before, London’s FTSE 100 index of leading companies closed 0.40 percent higher to stand at 6,431.76 points, while Frankfurt’s DAX 30 climbed 1.32 percent to 7,759.21 points and Paris’ CAC 40 jumped 1.58 percent to 3,842.94 points.
In foreign exchange trade, the euro dipped to $1.2995 from $1.2997 late on Tuesday in New York. The dollar which again neared the 100 yen level in early trading, stabilised back to 99.36 yen compared to 99.48 on Tuesday.
On the London Bullion Market, gold climbed to $1,428.50 an ounce from $1,408 on Tuesday.
German business confidence took a tumble this month, according to data yesterday, supporting speculation of a possible interest rate cut by the European Central Bank, analysts said.
The Ifo economic institute’s closely watched business climate index fell to 104.4 points in April from 106.7 points in March. That was a bigger drop than expected: analysts had been pencilling in only a very slight decrease this month to 106.2 points
Market watchers were also poring over a batch of mixed company earnings data. Volkswagen shares rose 2.59 percent to ¤150.70, even though Europe’s biggest carmaker said its net profit skidded sharply lower in the first three months of the current year as a result of the “difficult market environment.”
In London, Barclays dropped 1.26 percent to 294.55 pence, erasing earlier gains, as the British bank said it had returned a net profit in the first quarter after suffering a loss after tax one year earlier.
US stocks meanwhile were mixed. In midday trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.17 percent, the broad-based S&P 500 added 0.03 percent, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index lost 0.15 percent.
Asian stock markets rose on bargain-buying yesterday with Tokyo enjoying a healthy bump as the dollar tries to break through the 100 yen barrier for the first time in four years. Tokyo closed up 2.32 percent, Seoul won 0.87 percent and Sydney climbed 1.72 percent.
AFP
