Benfield Group gains on offer from Aon

European equities markets saw gains Friday as banks saw gains on the possibility that Korea Development Bank might buy into Lehman Brothers (NYSE: LEH) and as airlines and carmakers jumped on declines in oil prices.

In London, the FTSE 100 added 2.52 percent to 5,505.6 while the FTSE 250 gained 2.73 percent to 9,182.7.

In the insurance sector, Benfield Group Ltd (LSE: BFD) lead the 250 higher with a gain of 27 percent on the news that Aon Corp (NYSE: AOC) had offered $1.6 billion for the company, while home builder Persimmon (LSE: PSN) saw another gain as it added 10.09 percent.

In the financial sector, mortgage lender HBOS (LSE: HBOS) was up 6.3 percent while Barclays Bank (LSE: BARC; NYSE: BCS; TYO: 8642) was 5.1 percent higher and Lloyds TSB (LSE: LLOY) gained 7 percent.

Most miners and the real estate and retail sectors also saw gains.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 1.82 percent to 1,175.79 as the Dax added 1.69 percent to 6342.42, the CAC-40 was 2.23 percent higher to 4,400.45 and the IBEX gained 2.5 percent to 11,497.3.

The only loser on the CAC-40 was in the steel sector, as ArcelorMittal (Euronext: MT; NYSE: MT; BMAD: MTS; LuxSE: MT) dropped 0.38 percent, while the Paris index was led by aerospace group EADS (Euronext: EAD; FWB: EAD) with a gain of 5.57 percent.

Equities markets in the Asia-Pacific region were mixed Friday, with most markets seeing declines.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 hit a five-month low as it fell 0.68 percent to 12,666.04 while the Topix index was down 0.66 percent to 1,216.42 and the Mothers market dropped 2.31 percent to 441.89 amid the lowest trading volumes of any full session this year.

Traders and the pharmaceuticals sector saw gains, but a stronger yen hurt exporters while banks still suffered from worries about the potential for more credit market losses.

Carmaker Honda (TYO: 72 67; NYSE: HMC) was down 2.6 percent, while in the banking sector Mitusbishi UFJ (TYO: 8306; NYSE: MTU) fell 2.1 percent and Sumitomo Mitsui (TYO: 8316) dropped 3.6 percent.

In the wider region, oil refiners and airlines both declined on gains in crude oil prices while Australian markets were helped to gains as commodities prices went up.

The Taiex was down 0.1 percent to 6,911.64 while South Korea’s Kospi fell 1.04 percent to 1,496.91 as its Kookmin Bank (KRXs: 060000; NYSE: KB) was 6.1 percent lower on the session and the Shanghai Composite dropped 1.09 percent to 2,405.23.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX200 was up 1.15 percent to 4,931.4 while the Sydney Ordinaries added 1.22 percent to 5,010.2 as miners Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO; LSE: RIO; NYSE: RTP) and BHP Billiton (ASX: BHP; LSE: BLT; NYSE: BHP) gained 1.8 percent and 3.1 percent respectively.

Other gainers included the Straits Times Index, which added 0.36 percent to 2,723.3 while India’s Sensex gained 1.11 percent to 14,401.49.

Hong Kong’s markets were closed due to a typhoon.

In early afternoon trade in New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1.56 percent to 11,608.85 while the Nasdaq Composite had added 1.12 percent to 2,407.01 and the S&P 500 had gained 0.83 percent to 1,288.37.

UAL Corporation (NAS: UAUA), which owns American Airlines, added 9.3 percent as crude oil prices declined, while Lehman Brothers jumped 12 percent on the Korean takeover rumors.

The steel sector, however, was lower after US Steel ( NYSE: X) dropped 4.3 percent on analyst comments that a tentative labor contract will cost the company too much.

Story link: Benfield Group gains on offer from Aon