(MENAFN- Gulf Times) Europe's main stock markets rose yesterday as investors followed developments in Greece, which made massive loan repayments to creditors and reopened its banks.
London's benchmark FTSE 100 index added 0.20% to end the day at
6,788.69 points.
In the eurozone, the CAC 40 in Paris edged up 0.35% to 5,142.49 points,
while Frankfurt's DAX 30 rose 0.53 % to 11,735.72 points compared with Friday's close.
"News on Monday that Greece had made scheduled payments to the ECB and IMF using its newly-agreed bridge finance was encouraging," said analyst Jennifer McKeown at Capital Economics.
But she also warned of possible political upheaval with Greek Prime
Minister Alexis Tsipras "fighting against considerable dissent from within his party, which could prompt an early election this autumn."
The euro strengthened against the dollar after earlier weakness caused by expectations of a US interest rate rise by the end of the year.
The European single currency stood at $1.0855 compared with $1.0830 late on Friday in New York.
Gold slumped to the lowest point in nearly five and a half years, weighed down by reports of massive selling in China, dealers said.
The precious metal tumbled to $1,072.35 in Asian deals, striking the lowest point since February 11, 2010, and breaching the key psychological barrier of $1,100.
Gold had already slid Friday on the back of the strong dollar, which soared last week after US Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen reaffirmed expectations of an interest rate hike by year's end.
A stronger greenback makes dollar-denominated commodities more expensive for buyers using weaker currencies. That tends to dent demand and, in turn, pull prices lower.
In London, shares of Pearson, the British publisher of the Financial Times, dived 1.57% to 1,255 pence on rumours it was sounding out potential buyers for its influential economic and business daily, though no decision to sell has been taken, Bloomberg News reported.
Embattled banks were also in focus with a report saying Barclays could shed 30,000 jobs, while Standard Chartered unveiled a streamlined management team.
Barclays' share price rose 0.27% to close at 280.85 pence, while Standard Chartered advanced by 0.93% in value to 1,026.50 pence.
US stocks climbed yesterday following solid earnings from Morgan Stanley and Lockheed Martin's purchase of Sikorsky Aircraft from United Technologies for $9bn.
In New York mid-day trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was at 18,120.25, up 0.19%.
The broad-based S&P 500 added 0.10% at 2,128.86, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 0.19% to 5,220.28.
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