Germany’s Dax closes at record high

After several days of declines, European markets were mixed on Wednesday. Continental indices were higher, while London once again saw slight declines. The FTSE Eurofirst 300 added 0.44 percent to 1,621.74. In Madrid, the IBEX gained 0.24 percent to 15,035.7, while the Paris CAC-40 was 0.36 percent higher to 6,093.29 and the Dax was up 0.71 percent to 8,090.49 to close at a record high. Insurers and the semiconductors sector saw gains, while drug makers, supermarkets, and utilities were lower.

In London the FTSE 100 dropped 0.01 percent to 6,649.3, while the FTSE 250 fell 0.17 percent to 11,797.5. Insurers did well in London, as well, as did miners and the oil sector. Retailers saw declines after analysts interpreted the minutes of the latest meeting of the Bank of England as indicating that interest rates will likely rise in July.

Wall Street was mixed in midday trade. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up, but just barely, gaining 0.01 percent to 13,635.66. On the other hand, the Nasdaq Composite was 0.01 percent lower to 2,629.48, while the S&P 500 dropped 0.21 percent to 1,530.48. US retailers were mixed. The banking sector saw gains on quarterly reports, while restaurant operators weren’t as fortunate

Most Asia-Pacific equities markets were higher again. The main exception was South Korea’s Kospi index, which fell 1.3 percent 1,783.79 as investors took profits in the brokerage sector, which had driven recent gains. Bangkok’s SET index added 1.7 percent to 777.1, while the Taiex index in Taiwan was up 2.1 percent to 8,755.88. The Straits Times index in Singapore was 0.27 percent higher to 3,628.67, while in Hong Kong the Hang Seng index added 0.47 percent to 21,684.67. In India, the Sensex gained 0.81 percent to 14,411.95. The Sydney Ordinaries added 0.43 percent to 6,421.1 in Australia. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 was 0.3 percent higher to 18,211.68, while the Topix index was up 0.2 percent to 1,783.72, where he securities sector and shipping were both higher on the session.

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