Global stock markets rise on Europe stimulus hopes
May 19, 2015, 5:00 AM
People walk past an electronic stock board of a securities firm in Tokyo, Tuesday, May 19, 2015. Asian stock markets rose Tuesday after Wall Street hit a new high as investors looked ahead to U.S. and European inflation data. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
(AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
BEIJING (AP) — Global stock markets rose Tuesday after a European Central Bank official said the eurozone’s stimulus program would be stepped up temporarily and amid hopes for a bailout deal for Greece.
KEEPING SCORE: Germany’s DAX added 1.8 percent to 11,798.92 and France’s CAC 40 rose 1.6 percent to 5,092.72. Britain’s FTSE 100 gained 0.4 percent to 6,999.15. Futures for the Dow Jones industrial average and the Standard & Poor’s 500 were both up 0.3 percent.
EUROPE WATCH: Investors were cheered by an ECB official’s remark that the central bank would step up its bond-buying stimulus program in May and June in anticipation of slow trading in July and August. The program tends to boost stock and bond markets and weaken the euro, which fell in currency markets Tuesday.
Greece was also in focus after its finance minister said he expects an agreement with bailout creditors within the next week, which would save the cash-strapped country from fast-approaching bankruptcy. The talks have run on for almost four months.
ASIA’S DAY: The Shanghai Composite Index rose 3.1 percent to 4,417.55 and Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.7 percent to 20,026.38. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng added 0.4 percent to 27,693.54 and Seoul’s Kospi advanced 0.3 percent to 2,120.85. India’s Sensex rose 0.6 percent to 27,841.69. Sydney’s S&P/ASX 200 shed 0.8 percent to 5,615.50. Southeast Asian markets were mixed.
ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude fell for third day, losing 50 cents to $58.93 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract lost 26 cents on Monday, declining for a third day to close at $59.43.
CURRENCIES: The dollar rose to 120.11 yen from Monday’s 119.96 yen. The euro declined to $1.1186 from $1.1320.
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
