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European stocks rally on merger news:Posted By: Janine Delacroix LONDON (AFP) - European stock markets climbed, as merger talk helped to offset a tumble on Wall Street overnight, dealers said.London's FTSE 100 index of leading shares climbed 0.59 percent to 5,970.60 points in late morning trade. In early afternoon deals, Frankfurt's DAX 30 gained 0.27 percent to 5,906.71 points and in Paris the CAC 40 won 0.61 percent to 5,181.37 points. The DJ Euro Stoxx 50 index of leading eurozone shares advanced 0.20 percent to 3,818.70 points. The euro stood at 1.1998 dollars. US stocks had tumbled on Tuesday amid disappointment that the Federal Reserve had given no signal it was near the end of its cycle of rate increases, dealers said. The markets turned abruptly lower after the Fed raised its target for overnight interest rates to 4.75 percent from 4.50 percent. Although this was widely expected, the market was disheartened that the central bank kept language that "some further policy firming may be needed" to keep economic growth and inflation in balance. On Wednesday, Japanese share prices jumped to the highest level for five years and seven months as investors bet on a bright outlook for the economy, dealers said. In London, BG Group jumped 5.05 percent to 739 pence, topping the FTSE 100, after a London newspaper said the British energy company could face a takeover bid from US energy giant Exxon Mobil, dealers said. The Independent said Exxon could bid 900 pence per share, valuing BG Group at 31.6 billion pounds (45.7 billion euros, 54.9 billion dollars). In Spain, Grupo Ferrovial jumped 2.96 percent to 66.15 euros after the Spanish construction company brought on board a potential rival to its quest to buy British airports operator BAA. A consortium led by Grupo Ferrovial said it had appointed Macquarie Bank as an adviser over its bid to buy British airports operator BAA. A statement to the London Stock Exchange said also that Ferrovial had given Macquarie Airports, an investment fund managed by Australian group Macquarie Bank, the option to buy the Spanish company's stakes in two airports should the consortium succeed in taking over BAA. Dealers said the move was aimed at preventing a possible counterbid for BAA by Macquarie Bank. Back in London, BAA rose 0.24 percent to 829 pence. On March 17, BAA rejected an informal takeover offer from the Ferrovial-led consortium that valued it at 8.72 billion pounds. In New York on Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.85 percent to 11,156.54 points and the Nasdaq composite shed 0.48 percent to 2,304.46 points. The Standard and Poor's 500 index dropped 0.64 percent to 1,293.23. On Wednesday in Asia, Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei-225 index climbed 1.49 percent to close at 16,938.41 points, levels last seen in August 2000. Hong Kong's key Hang Seng Index closed 0.70 percent lower at 15.745.11 points as investors locked in profits after the US Federal Reserve signalled further rate hikes may be on the way, dealers said. Courtesy Of: Yahoo! News The information reported above is property of Yahoo! inc. and reprinted or modified with legitimate permission. We thank Yahoo! inc. for the kind cooperation with us and other shareholders. |
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