LONDON (AFP) ? Stock markets closed up on Monday, after bumper gains in Asia, though banks were hit once again by concerns of exposure to the Greek debt crisis.
London's benchmark FTSE 100 index of top shares closed up 0.46 percent to 6,017.54 points.
Asian markets had rallied earlier on Monday after better-than-expected US manufacturing data sent Wall Street stocks rallying before the weekend, amid easing fears over Greece.
Eurozone finance ministers cleared the way on Saturday for Greece to receive the next 12-billion-euro tranche of its 110-billion-euro EU-IMF bailout after lawmakers in Athens passed tough austerity cuts.
The deal led to relief across world markets at the end of last week as many had feared a default could lead to another global financial crisis.
But ratings agency Standard & Poor's on Monday warned that debt rollover plans for crisis-hit Greece could amount to a "selective default."
That dented the European banking sector on Monday, which has been dogged by concern about potential losses linked to Greece.
Lloyds dropped 1.84 percent, or 0.94 pence, to finish at 49.88, while Royal Bank of Scotland shares fell 1.46 percent (0.58 pence) to finish at 58.11. Barclays lost 1.07 percent (2.85 pence), closing at 262.7.
Engineering firm Wood Group made the biggest gains of the day, rising 3.41 percent (22.86 pence) to finish at 694, followed by microprocessor-maker Arm Holdings, which was up 2.7 percent (16 pence) to finish at 609.5.
Meanwhile Cairn Energy was the worst blue-chip performer, dropping 3.3 percent (13.8 pence) to finish at 404.7, followed by Lloyds.
Trading was somewhat subdued amid the Independence Day public holiday in the United States. Lloyds was the most widely-traded, with 78.6 million units changing hands, followed by Vodafone, which saw 56.2 million shares switch owners.
At 16.59 BST, a pound was worth 1.6090 dollars or 1.1051 euros.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.