Dollar hits a high as global stocks rally

Global stocks rallied, while the dollar reached an eight-month high against the euro after corporate earnings improved and data showed rising US consumer prices.

Russian shares rose for the first time in seven days. European stocks also rose, rebounding from three days of losses.

Dublin

It was a fairly quiet day on the Dublin market, with light volumes for the most part. The Iseq closed up 46.7 points or 1 per cent, slightly behind its European peers, to finish the day at 4,723.

Shares in Ryanair were 3 per cent higher at €6.95. Smurfit Kappa also had a good day, increasing 3.2 per cent and climbing back over the €16 mark.

Bank of Ireland crawled back to 24 cent, finishing the day up 2.7 per cent.

There was good volume in the number of IFG shares traded, according to one analyst, with the stock ending 1.2 per cent higher at €1.67.

Hibernia REIT fell almost 1 per cent to €1.10.

The company yesterday announced its property portfolio was yielding 4.1 per cent, and that it was seeking to raise additional debt.

London

UK stocks advanced to a two-week high, rebounding from yesterday’s decline, as investor concern over the Ukraine crisis eased.

Anglo American rose 3.6 per cent, leading a gauge of London-listed commodity producers to a 16-month high.

ARM Holdings, which opened lower after posting a slowdown in royalty revenue, advanced the most since April 2013 as the mobile-phone chip designer said fees growth will accelerate. It jumped 5.7 per cent to 881 pence.

Royal Mail Group dropped to its lowest price since its initial public offering last year after saying its parcels revenue for the year will be lower than expected.

The FTSE 100 Index rose 66.9 points, or 1 per cent, to 6,795.34 at the close of trading in London.

Europe

European stocks rose, rebounding from three days of losses, as companies including Actelion projected an improvement in financial results.

Actelion climbed 2.6 per cent after raising its full-year profit forecast. The drugmaker said that core earnings will increase at least in the mid-teen percentage range this year, up from a previous growth forecast of a low single-digit percentage.

Publicis Groupe lost 4.7 per cent to €56.11. The French advertising company said second-quarter sales fell 1.5 per cent to €1.76 billion, missing analysts’ estimates, as the euro strengthened and markets including North America shrank.

Credit Suisse Group slid 1 per cent after posting a wider loss than analysts had estimated.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose 1.3 per cent to 342.44 at the close. France’s CAC 40 Index rallied 1.5 per cent while Germany’s DAX Index rose 1.3 per cent.

US

American stocks rose in early trading, with the Standard and Poor’s 500 Index climbing to a record, as data showed inflation has failed to gain a toehold and investors assessed earnings from Travelers to Comcast.

The dollar and S&P 500 were also helped by signs of cooperation from Ukraine’s pro-Russian separatists over the downing of the Malaysia Airlines jetliner last week.

Chipotle Mexican Grill jumped 11 per cent after reporting earnings and sales that beat projections.

Comcast added 1.9 per cent after profit topped estimates on higher revenue from internet customers.

McDonald’s fell 1.8 per cent after profit fell short of analysts’ estimates.

Travelers dropped 4 per cent as earnings slid 26 per cent.

The SandP 500 rose 0.6 per cent to 1,985.09 at 12.50pm in New York and rose as high as 1,986.24.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 65.78 points, or 0.4 per cent, to 17,117.51.

Additional reporting: Bloomberg, Reuters