World markets report

Dec 15, 2009

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The FTSE 100 bounced back yesterday after Abu Dhabi bailed out Dubai, and metals prices firmed up. The index rose 1% to close at 5,315.

Commodity stocks were among the day’s top performers. Lonmin added 3.7%, while Antofagasta rose 3.2%., and Xstrata and ENRC gained 2.6% and 2% respectively.

Banks rose after fears over exposure to Dubai subsided. Standard Chartered led the way, up 4.3%, while HSBC was 2.6% higher and RBS rose 1.06%. Lloyds, however, was one of the index’s biggest fallers, down 1.9%.

Energy stocks were also in positive territory: BG Group rose 1.6%, BP 1% and Royal Dutch Shell 0.9%.

Read the latest stock market news and charts here.

In Europe, the Paris CAC 40 rose 27 points to 3,830; and the German Xetra Dax was 46 points higher at 5,802.

In the US, the Dow Jones rose 0.3% to 10,501; the S&P 500 added 0.7% to 1,114; and the Nasdaq Composite gained 1% to 2,212.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 fell 0.2% to 10,083; and the broader Topix index lost 0.1% to close at 884. In China, the Shanghai Composite index fell 0.9% to 3,274; and the CSI 300 was 0.8% lower at 3,583.

Brent spot was trading at $71.73 early today, and in New York, crude oil was at $69.56. Spot gold was trading at $1,120 an ounce, silver was at $17.23 and platinum was at $1,443

In the forex markets this morning, sterling was trading against the US dollar at 1.6267 and against the euro at 1.1162. The dollar was trading at 0.6863 against the euro and 89.16 against the Japanese yen.

And in the UK, house prices rose for the fourth month in a row, according to the latest survey form the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). 35% more of its members reported rising prices than falling prices, the highest since November 2006. A spokesman for RICS, Ian Perry, said: "For the fourth month in a row, the survey points towards prices rising, even though the general state of the economy would suggest that the housing market should not be faring as well as it is.

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