A trader sits in front of a board displaying Germany’s share index Dax yesterday at the stock exchange in Frankfurt, western Germany. Europe’s main stock markets rose further, with traders reacting to positive Chinese economic data before the release of key US jobs data, yesterday.
AFP/London
Europe’s main stock markets rose further yesterday, with traders reacting to positive Chinese economic trade data and an upbeat US jobs report, analysts said.
London’s FTSE 100 index of leading companies climbed 0.69% to finish the week at 6,483.58 points, while Frankfurt’s Dax 30 won 0.59% to 7,986.47 points, close to a five-year high.
In Paris, the Cac 40 jumped by 1.22% to 3,840.15 points.
The euro fell to $1.2990 from $1.3107 late on Thursday in New York.
Gold prices edged up to $1,581.75 an ounce on the London Bullion Market from $1,579.50 Thursday.
In New York, US stocks also gained in midday trades after a surprisingly strong jobs report suggested the economic recovery was on track.
The Dow Jones Industrial average was up by 0.35% after surging briefly to a new intra-day record of 14,413.17, while the broad-based S&P 500 added 0.26% and the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index rose by 0.24%.
The US jobs market brightened better than expected in February, with the unemployment rate falling and solid job growth, official data showed.
The jobless rate fell to 7.7%, from 7.9% in January, and the US gained a net 236,000 jobs, the Labor Department said.
“It’s another day with markets visibly up in the green territory, which seems pretty much standard now,” commented Anita Paluch, a trader at Gekko Global Markets.
Official data showed China’s exports surged more than 20% in February year-on-year despite the Lunar New Year holiday, in another sign of recovery for the world’s second-largest economy.
European stock markets had already posted sharp gains on Thursday after the ECB and Bank of England held their key rates, while forgoing any new stimulus measures as policymakers took stock of what appears to be an improving global economic climate.
President Barack Obama last week reluctantly ordered an $85bn austerity drive that could slow the US economy and slash jobs.
Back in Europe on Thursday, the ECB held its main refinancing rate at a historic low of 0.75% despite concerns that political gridlock in Italy could trigger a resurgence in the debt crisis.
European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi said he believed that with the current rate, an unprecedented amount of liquidity pumped into banks and a key bond-purchase programme in place, the central bank has already done a lot to help resolve the long-running eurozone debt crisis.
The Bank of England, meanwhile, voted to hold its reference interest rate at a record-low 0.5%, where it has stood for four years, and opted against increasing its cash stimulus programme.
