Equities reach high in eurozone and Asia

In the eurozone on Friday, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 rose 0.16 percent to 1,139.75, which was a three-year high.

The fact that Pernod Ricard’s bid for Allied Domecq seemed sure to prevail after the withdrawal of US winemaker Constellation Brands from the bidding for Allied was instrumental in the gain. Also aiding the Eurofirst’s rise was a week of takeover news in European banking sector led to significant advances.

In London, positive activity in the oil sector was a major factor in the FTSE 100 also rising to its highest level in three years. It rose 1 percent for the week to close at 4,077.6 on Friday. The FTSE saw an even larger weekly gain, advancing by 1.2 percent to close at 7,354.9.

Meanwhile, at mid-day in New York on Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.3 percent to 10,609.87, the S&P 500 had advanced 0.3 percent to 1,214.73, while Nasdaq remained unchanged at 2,087.21.

The markets in New York saw a series of small gains during the week, on advances in the homebuilding and oil sectors and greater consumer confidence.

In Japan, the equities markets found their highest levels since mid-April on Friday, with the Nikkei 225 gaining 0.9 percent to close at 11,514.03 while the Topix index advanced 1 percent to 1,172.33.

The mining sector and the oil and coal sectors were up as a consequence of high commodities prices, and trading houses involved in commodities trading also saw large gains. Export-dependent stocks were up as well, but not as much.

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