European equities markets see substantial gains again

European markets were up for the third day in a row on Friday. The FTSE Eurofirst 300 added 1.21 percent to 1,624.69 as the Paris CAC-40 gained 0.96 percent to 6,105.28, the IBEX was up 1.15 percent to 15,252.1 in Madrid, and the Dax added 2.31 percent to 8,030.64 in Frankfurt. Carmakers and utilities were mixed. There were gains in a variety of sectors, including aerospace, banks, chemicals, media, and stock exchange operators.

In London, the FTSE 100 gained 1.24 percent to 6,732.4 and the FTSE 250 was 1.61 percent higher to 11,999.6. Miners saw gains on positive broker comments, while supermarkets were higher on stake-building, while the pharmaceuticals and building materials sectors also advanced. Declines came in the pharmaceuticals and food and beverages sectors, as well as for some banks.

Asia-Pacific equities markets were mixed on the session. In Australia, the Sydney Ordinaries added 0.46 percent to 6,317.1 and the Hang Seng index gained 0.72 percent to 21,017.05 in Hong Kong. On the other hand the Straits Times index in Singapore dropped 0.06 percent to 3,581.16, while the Sensex fell 0.33 percent to 14,162.71 in India.

In Tokyo, meanwhile, the markets were higher as the yen continued to weaken. The Nikkei 225 was 0.7 percent higher to 17,971.49, while the Topix index added 0.9 percent to 1,772.94. Small and mid-cap indexes did even better, with the Mothers market gaining 1.3 percent to 939.29 and the Jasdaq ending 1.7 percent higher to 82.46. Exporters, such as carmakers and electronics manufacturers, did well. The internet sector was also higher, but Reits were lower on declines in bond yields.

Wall Street had gained by midday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average adding 0.8 percent to 13.658.18. That took the week’s gain to 1.8 percent. The Nasdaq Composite was 0.9 percent higher to 2,653.97, up 2 percent on the week, while the S&P 500 had gained 0.8 percent to 1,535.14. The S&P was up 1.8 percent over the week. The Russell 2000 index of small and mid-caps added 1.35 percent to 848.44. Advances came among carmakers, chipmakers and the retail sector over the week. There were gains for gun manufacturers on higher sales and profits. Computer makers and the steel sector were among the losers on the week.

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