German shares traded up on Thursday, as two-day summit of European leaders began in Brussels today. The DAX Index surged 0.8%, or 64.91 points, to 8,036.42, the highest value since January 2008. All but two groups in the gauge inched up. Deutsche Lufthansa AG was the best-performing company with a 3.6% rise, supporting advance in consumer services sector. Profit of
U.K. stocks traded close to a five-year high on Thursday, as rallying shares of financial and telecommunications groups led to gains in the benchmark index. The FTSE 100 advanced 0.4%, or 24.56 points, to 6,508.20. More than half of companies listed in the index posted gains in their share prices. Aggreko Plc, the world's largest temporary power generation company, jumped
On Thursday, US equity market indices were gaining, following a report that showed declined in weekly jobless claims, which added to the signs of recovery. The S&P 500 grew by 0.43%, reaching the level of 1,561.18. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also gained 0.43% and was traded at 14,516.97 by 1:56 p.m. London time.
On Thursday, copper was gaining, as investors shifted into riskier assets, following an optimistic retail sales data from the US, but the commodity remained under pressure by the strong Dollar. On the London Metal Exchange, three-month copper was traded at $7,791 per tonne, which was a gain compared to Wednesday's closing price of $7,785 per tonne.
The U.S. labour market showed a positive sign in the week ended on March 9 as the total number of initial claims for unemployment benefits decreased surprisingly in the week, a report released by the Labor Department showed on Thursday. The report showed that first-time jobless claims went down by 10,000, when it dropped from 342,000 to 332,000, while economists
On Thursday, expectations of British inflation grew to the highest for four-and-a-half years. 10-year break-even rate, which is an index that measures inflation expectations, climbed to a level of 3.37%, compared to the 2012 lowest of 2.32% in July. Yield on 10-year UK government bonds added 2 basis points and reached 1.99%.
On Thursday, crude oil was experiencing a two-day long streak of losses, following the announcement of increase in inventories. On the NYMEX, WTI futures for April delivery lost 0.6% and were traded at $92.01 by 12:42 p.m. in London. April Brent futures, on the contrary, inched up by 0.6% for the day.
On Thursday, gold was traded lower as data from the US showed signs of economic recovery. On the Comex, April delivery futures of the precious metal were traded at $1,575.00 per troy ounce, which was 0.8% daily loss by 8:41 a.m. in New York. Yesterday, the commodity hit a two-week high, settling at $1,598.80.
On Thursday, European equity markets were in green territories, following the release of optimistic US employment data. Euro Stoxx 50 grew up by 1.32% and reached the level of 2,740.50 at 12:52 London time. The biggest gainer was Italian insurer Generali, which grew by 7.4% following a report that showed unexpected operating results.
The Swiss National Bank guaranteed to precede all necessary steps to keep the minimum exchange rate in the limit of CHF 1.2 versus the Euro. The Zurich-based central bank is maintaining the target range for the three-month Libor unchanged at 0.0-0.25%. The SNB forecasts an inflation rate to decline 0.2% and foresees growth of 1-1.5% for Switzerland in 2013."The inflation
Eurostat reported on Thursday that unemployment in Eurozone continued to grow in the last quarter of 2012. The number of employed people declined by 0.3% on a seasonally adjusted basis and reached a level of 145.7 million in absolute terms. Year-over-year, employment fell by 0.8%, compared to a fall of 0.6% in the preceding quarter.
On Thursday, Spanish borrowing costs decreased during an unscheduled auction, since investors were optimistic about debt markets. The Spanish treasury managed to sell 803 million euros of 16, 27 and 28-year bonds. The yields fell to 5.224%, 5.434% and 5.432% respectively. Bid-ask ratio was equal to 4.1.
Latest data showed on Thursday that inflation of consumer prices in Poland declined last month more than expected. Consumer price index added 1.3% compared to a reading of 1.7% in the preceding month. Economists, however, expected that consumer prices will grow by 1.5% in February.
Industrial output in Japan advanced below economists' expectation in month January, a report released by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry showed on Thursday. The report said industrial production added 0.3% on a sequential basis in January compared to projections of a 1.3% gain, on an annual basis industrial output dropped 5.8% in January.
Producer prices in U.S. increased slightly more than preliminary estimated in February driven by a substantial growth of energy prices, the Labor Department reported on Thursday. The report showed the producer price index advanced 0.7% in February compared to expectations of a 0.6% growth, following a 0.2% gain recorded the month before.
Hong Kong stocks fluctuated between gains and losses on Thursday. The Hang Seng Index increased 0.3% to 22,618.18 points, winning back the losses of 1.1% at the beginning of the trading session. Chinese railway and utility companies rallied, while the Hong Kong banks were put under pressure as mortgage rates were raised. Utilities and financial sectors posted biggest gains in
U.S. equities edged higher on rising optimism about the world's largest economy's outlook, as retail sales data topped the analyst estimates. The S&P 500 Index rallied 0.1%, to 1,554.52 by its close. Five out of ten sectors included in the index posted gains. Among best-performing companies was Netflix with a 5.6% rally to end at $192.36 after the online video
Japanese stocks rallied snapping a two-day streak of losses, sending the Nikkei 225 Stock Average index higher on rising optimism among investors prior to confirmation of a new leadership team for the BOJ. The lower house of parliament endorsed Kikuo Iwata and Hiroshi Nakaso for deputy governor posts. The Nikkei 225 Index climbed 1.2% to close at 12,381.19, extending this
Most U.S. blue chips advanced on Wednesday, pushing the Dow Jones Industrial Average towards its longest winning streak since 1996 on better than expected retail sales data in February. The retail sales surged 1.1% in February, gaining for a fifth straight month and bolstering optimism over the nation's economy. The Dow Jones index closed at 14,455.28, up 5.22 points or
Swedish unemployment rate marginally increased in the month of February and the total number of people without a job amounted to 427,000 in the same month, when it stayed unchanged from February 2012, the Statistics Sweden reported on Thursday. The jobless rate grew from 8.4% recorded in January to 8.5% the following month.
The U.S. Dollar closed near its seven-month high versus a basket of currencies on Thursday after a data showed on Wednesday that the U.S. retail sales advanced at the fastest rate in a five-month period suggesting the country's economy is recovering despite tax hikes and spending cuts. The greenback advanced against the shared currency when it closed at $1.2923 on
The Sterling extended its gains against the U.S. Dollar on Thursday after a report released by the Bank of England said that the central bank's 17 billion pounds asset-purchases program will bring benefits for public finances. The Pound gained 0.1% to $1.4944 earlier on Thursday session following a slide to $1.4832 the day before, it also increased 0.1% to 86.77
Shares in Asia continued to tumble on Thursday session as local factors overshadowed the positive mood on Wall Street after the Dow Jones Industrial Average recorded another historical high on Tuesday. The MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside of Japan decreased for the third time in a row mainly due to a 1.3% slide of its material sector, while
Finnish retail sales advanced on an annual basis by 2.9% in January, while for the whole year of 2012 the country's retail sales grew 4.2% and wholesale sales increased 2.8% compared to 2011, a report released by the Statistics Finland showed on Thursday. The report also said the wholesale trade sales surged up 2% annually, whereas sales of motor vehicles