Print

Mail

wiki links

European stock exchanges rise on good US job figures

European stock exchanges edged higher on Friday on better than expected US job creation figures for last month.

The London FTSE 100 index added 0.34 percent to close at 6,152.40 points, while in Paris the CAC 40 index rose by a slight 0.09 percent to 5,384.16. The Frankfurt DAX rose 0.22 percent to 6,427.41.

The Euro Stoxx 50 index of leading eurozone shares inched up 0.03 percent to 4,019.89.

On the currency market the euro briefly rose back above US$1.33 amid talk that Russia was buying euros, before slipping lower after US Secretary of tthe Treasury Henry Paulson expressed support for the US currency.

In late European trading, the euro stood at US$1.3234 from US$1.3280 in New York late on Thursday.

Wall Street shares posted modest gains in late morning deals after the US jobs report.

At 1647 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.33 percent at 12,318.38 while the NASDAQ composite was 0.70 percent higher at 2,444.58.

The Labor Department said US employers added 132,000 jobs last month in a report that suggested overall economic growth remains on track.

The upbeat report -- most economists had forecast job growth of just 105,000 positions -- was released ahead of next Tuesday's meeting of the Federal Reserve at which policymakers will deliberate interest rates.

Job creation is seen as one of the best indicators of economic growth, and most market watchers expect the Fed to keep its key fed funds rate steady at 5.25 percent next week.

In London Barclays jumped 3.25 percent to 730 pence on a report from Merrill Lynch that Britain's third largest bank could be a takeover target of Bank of America.

Mining issues were under pressure, weighed down by lower copper and precious metals prices. Antofagasta fell 4.21 percent to close at 517.50 while Vedanta Resources gave up 5.48 percent to finish at 1,241 pence.

In Paris pharmaceutical group Sanofi-Aventis gained 0.22 percent to reach 68.55 euros as the US Food and Drug Administration announced that its review of the company's anti-obesity treatment Acomplia would be completed by April 26 next year.

Corporate investment bank Natixis jumped 5.07 percent to 21.75 euros on the second day of resumed trading following a major public offering.
This story has been viewed 867 times.