Bids news lifts insurer Benfield

European equities markets saw gains Friday as banks saw gains on the possibility that Korea Development Bank might buy into Lehman Brothers (NYSE: LEH) and as airlines and carmakers jumped on declines in oil prices.

In London, the FTSE 100 added 2.52 percent to 5,505.6 while the FTSE 250 gained 2.73 percent to 9,182.7.

In the insurance sector, Benfield Group Ltd (LSE: BFD) lead the 250 higher with a gain of 27 percent on the news that Aon Corp (NYSE: AOC) had offered $1.6 billion for the company, while home builder Persimmon (LSE: PSN) saw another gain as it added 10.09 percent.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 1.82 percent to 1,175.79 as the Dax added 1.69 percent to 6342.42, the CAC-40 was 2.23 percent higher to 4,400.45 and the IBEX gained 2.5 percent to 11,497.3.

Asia-Pacific region markets saw mixed results, with most in decline.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 hit a five-month low as it fell 0.68 percent to 12,666.04 while the Topix index was down 0.66 percent to 1,216.42 and the Mothers market dropped 2.31 percent to 441.89 amid the lowest trading volumes of any full session this year.

The Taiex was down 0.1 percent to 6,911.64 while South Korea’s Kospi fell 1.04 percent to 1,496.91 as its Kookmin Bank (KRXs: 060000; NYSE: KB) was 6.1 percent lower on the session and the Shanghai Composite dropped 1.09 percent to 2,405.23.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX200 was up 1.15 percent to 4,931.4 while the Sydney Ordinaries added 1.22 percent to 5,010.2 as miners Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO; LSE: RIO; NYSE: RTP) and BHP Billiton (ASX: BHP; LSE: BLT; NYSE: BHP) gained 1.8 percent and 3.1 percent respectively.

Other gainers included the Straits Times Index, which added 0.36 percent to 2,723.3 while India’s Sensex gained 1.11 percent to 14,401.49.

Hong Kong’s markets were closed due to a typhoon.

In early afternoon trade in New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1.56 percent to 11,608.85 while the Nasdaq Composite had added 1.12 percent to 2,407.01 and the S&P 500 had gained 0.83 percent to 1,288.37.

Commodities prices were down across the board, with crude oil losing more today than it gained Thursday while metals prices and grains were also lower.

The US dollar strengthened while the yen declined as more investors looked to purchase higher-yielding currencies.

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