European stocks climb in New Year rally
European stock markets climbed yesterday after a remarkable turnaround from a chaotic start to the year, with Frankfurt climbing to its highest level since the beginning of the global financial meltdown. On Wall Street, the Dow Jones was also up 0.13...
European stock markets climbed yesterday after a remarkable turnaround from a chaotic start to the year, with Frankfurt climbing to its highest level since the beginning of the global financial meltdown.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones was also up 0.13 per cent in afternoon trading.
"We are in the classic Santa Claus rally period," said Al Goldman, chief market strategist at US investment firm Wells Fargo Advisors, referring to the trading days usually associated with an upward bias.
The Dax index in Frankfurt gained 0.76 per cent to end at 6,002.92 points, its highest closing value since September 2008 - when US bank Lehman Brothers collapsed. The CAC 40 in Paris closed up 0.88 per cent at 3,947.15 points.
The Paris market last week recorded consecutive daily gains from Monday to Thursday, ending the period at its highest level for 15 months.
Market watchers said the 4,000-point threshold could be reached later this week. But analysts cautioned that the advance would likely reflect weak trading volumes rather than increased confidence in global economic recovery prospects.
Elsewhere in Europe, Brussels jumped 1.03 per cent, Madrid rose 0.47 per cent, Milan gained 0.84 per cent and Zurich's SMIO index finished 0.17 per cent higher at 6,591.01 points - its highest value since October 2008.
The big gainers in Europe were German energy group E.ON, which rose 1.79 per cent to €29.06 per shares, and French construction company Saint Gobain, which gained 2.40 per cent to close at €38.47.
The London Stock Exchange was closed for a public holiday.
The advances in Europe and the United States followed a solid performance in Asia, where Tokyo's Nikkei-225 index added 1.33 per cent to its best finish since August 26, on the back of a weaker yen and upbeat economic data.
New data out yesterday showed that Japan's factory output rose at the fastest pace in six months in November, extending the longest unbroken rebound in 12 years as Asia's biggest economy battles back from recession.