Global stocks climb after Janet Yellen keeps Fed policy intact

PAMELA NEWENHAM

Global equity markets rose yesterday after new Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen said she expects the US central bank to continue trimming its bond purchases, a sign the US economy is on track for further growth.

European stocks were also boosted by positive corporate results from carmakers Volkwagen and BMW, and tyre firm Michelin.

Dublin

Ireland’s Iseq index of Irish shares underperformed its European peers slightly yesterday, to close up 0.8 per cent, or 47.31 points at 4,852.13.

Ryanair, CRH, Kerry Group, Kingspan and Smurfit Kappa were among the most traded stocks in Dublin. Smurfit Kappa is due to report its full year results this morning.

It was a good day for airlines in general across Europe, with Ryanair climbing 2.08 per cent to €7.21 and Aer Lingus rising 3.2 per cent to €1.58.

CRH finished in line with its peers up 1.4 per cent at €19.92.

Paddy Power and Origin Enterprises were among the fallers yesterday, albeit declining by less than 1 per cent each.

London

Britain’s top equity index rose for a fifth straight session, boosted by retailers which were up strongly on industry data that provided more evidence the UK’s economic recovery is slowly gathering momentum.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 index closed up by 1.2 per cent, or 81.11 points, at 6,672.66 points - marking the index’s highest closing level since late January.

Marks and Spencer and Kingfisher each rose more than 3 per cent after a release showed British retail sales soared in January.

Babcock International climbed 4 per cent after saying its financial performance in the final three months of 2013 matched its forecasts.

Barclays slid 3.8 per cent after the UK's second-largest lender announced job cuts and said profit at its investment bank declined last year.

Europe

European stocks rose for a fifth day as Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen pledged to continue reducing stimulus as the economy strengthens.

Carmakers posted the biggest gain among 19 industry groups in the Stoxx 600 after Goldman Sachs boosted its growth forecasts for auto sales in western Europe.

PSA Peugeot Citroen advanced 4.5 per cent to €12.02 after Goldman Sachs added the company to its conviction-buy list.

BMW rose 3 per cent to €84.45 after the New York-based bank recommended buying the stock.

Michelin and Cie, Europe’s largest tyre maker, gained 3.3 per cent after maintaining its 2015 earnings forecast and raising its dividend.

L’Oreal slipped 3.3 percent to €124.80 after earlier jumping as much as 4.5 per cent. The world’s largest cosmetics company agreed to buy back 8 per cent of its shares from Nestle for €6 billion.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index added 1.3 per cent to 329.52 at the close of trading, taking its five-day gain to 3.8 per cent. France’s CAC 40 added 1.1 per cent and Germany’s DAX rallied 2 per cent.

US

US stocks rose and treasuries fell in early trading yesterday as Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen said the central bank will likely press on with stimulus cuts as the economy continues to strengthen.

In her first public comments as Fed chief, Ms Yellen emphasised continuity in the Fed's policy strategy, saying she strongly supports the approach of her predecessor, Ben Bernanke.

The Standard and Poor’s 500 Index climbed 0.7 per cent at 11.38am in New York for a fourth straight gain.

Sprint jumped 3.1 percent after posting fourth-quarter revenue that topped analysts’ estimates.

CVS Caremark posted higher quarterly profit as it processed more prescriptions and benefited from the introduction of new generic drugs. The stock rose 2.6 per cent to $68.66

Infloblox plunged 46.7 per cent to $17.67 after the network equipment maker estimated second-quarter revenue below analysts’ average forecast.

Additional reporting: Bloomberg, Reuters