Global equity markets gained and bond prices fell yesterday after business surveys from around the world revealed a global economy in expansion, helping to cement expectations that the Federal Reserve will trim its bond-buying stimulus programme in September.
However, all trading on Nasdaq, the second-biggest US stock exchange, was halted shortly after midday due to a technical problem.
DUBLIN
The Iseq index of Irish shares ended yesterday up 0.7 per cent, with most stocks performing well. Shares in Independent News & Media rose 1.78 per cent. It announced yesterday that its disposal of Independent News & Media South Africa has been completed.
Builders merchants Grafton Group, which is due to publish interim results next Wednesday, increased 2.4 per cent to close at €6.13. It was also a good day for food companies, with Glanbia, Fyffes and Kerry Group all gaining.
Airline stocks saw mixed results with Aer Lingus climbing 2 per cent to €1.69. Ryanair, which was one of the most traded stocks yesterday, fell half a per cent to €6.77.
LONDON
Britain's main equity index recovered from stinging losses in the previous session, as robust Chinese economic data lifted major mining stocks to allay worries about US monetary policy.
The FTSE recovered from a 1 per cent fall the previous day as the upbeat manufacturing data from China, the world’s biggest metals consumer, boosted mining stocks, with the FTSE 350 mining index up by 2.1 per cent.
Premier Oil lost 2.9 per cent, the biggest drop in almost three months. The energy explorer reported first-half net income of $161 million, falling short of the average analyst estimate of $180 million.
Home Retail, the owner of the Argos catalogue chain, added 3.6 per cent.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 index closed up by 0.9 per cent, its biggest one-day rise in more than two weeks.
EUROPE
European stocks climbed the most in three weeks as a report showed Germany's manufacturing and services industries expanded at a faster-than-expected pace.
Royal Ahold rallied 5.2 per cent – the most since May 2009 – after the Dutch owner of the Stop and Shop supermarket chain reported second-quarter underlying operating income that exceeded estimates.
Continental, Europe’s second-largest supplier of car parts, climbed 1.6 per cent to its highest price in at least 21 years.
BioMerieux added 0.9 per cent. The French maker of tests for HIV and hepatitis has won approval from the US Food and Drug Administration to market the first mass spectrometer for automated identification of bacteria and yeasts known to cause serious illness.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index gained 1 per cent, Germany's DAX added 1.4 per cent, while France's CAC 40 rose 1.1 per cent.
NEW YORK
US stocks closed higher yesterday in a trading session marred by a historic trading halt of roughly three hours on the Nasdaq stock exchange as a result of technical problems. All traffic through Nasdaq OMX Group, the second-largest US stock exchange, stopped shortly after midday. Shares in Nasdaq closed down 3.4 per cent.
The exchange resumed trading with a single stock, Atlantic American, at 3pm,before trading resumed in all of its listed securities at 3.25pm.
Microsoft ended the session as the biggest boost to both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, up 2.5 per cent. Apple edged up 0.1 per cent while Amazon closed 1.8 per cent higher.
Gains in the Dow were limited by Hewlett-Packard, which tumbled 12.5 per cent a day after reporting a decline in the Enterprise Group’s revenue. The group is the computer company’s second-largest division.
Cliffs Natural Resources surged 6.3 per cent and Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold added 4 per cent. – (Additional reporting: Bloomberg, Reuters)
