European markets gain on German business confidence

European markets saw substantial gains Thursday after a survey found that business confidence had risen more than expected in Germany. The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 5.31 percent to 1,329.48. The Dax added 5.93 percent to 6,821.07, a gain of 381 points, while the CAC-40 was 6.01 percent higher to 4,915.29 and Madrid’s IBEX gained 6.95 percent to 13,106.7. London markets saw their biggest one-day gains in nearly 5 years. The FTSE 100 added 4.75 percent to 5,875.8 and the FTSE 250 gained 3.82 percent to 9,856.3.

Most Asia-Pacific equities markets were higher again after US legislators said they are close to agreeing on an economic stimulus package and on the news that China’s economy grew by 11.2 percent in the fourth quarter. There were declines, however. In India, the Sensex dropped 2.12 percent to 17,221.74. Meanwhile, the Hang Seng index dropped 2.29 percent to 23,539.27 following the news of a trading scandal involving French bank Societe Generale (Euronext: GLE).

Among gainers on the session, the Shanghai Composite added 0.31 percent to 4,717.73. In Taiwan, the Taiex was up 1.47 percent to 7,517.05 while South Korea’s Kospi index was 2.12 percent higher to 1,663. The FTSE Straits Times Index gained 2.23 percent to 3,050.9. In Australia, the Sydney Ordinaries added 2.94 percent to 5,580.4 and the S&P/ASX200 jumped 3.11 percent to 5,580.4. Tokyo’s markets also saw gains. The Nikkei 225 was up 2.06 percent to 13,092.78 while the Topix index was 3.76 percent higher to 1,284.45 and the Mothers market of small and mid-caps added 3.56 percent to 641.93.

Wall Street made gains near the end of the trading day on good news about efforts to help the economy and on jobless claims. Within a half hour of the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.75 percent higher to 12,362.03 while the Nasdaq Composite was up 2.83 percent to 2,358.72 and the S&P 500 had gained 0.83 percent to 1,349.68.

Commodities prices were higher on the session, with platinum touching a record high during the day and crude oil up but still under the $90 per barrel level.

The euro strengthened versus the US dollar and the yen, but the pound saw gains against the euro.

Discuss this in the Finance Markets forums

Story link: European markets gain on German business confidence