BRITISH AND European stocks advanced yesterday, after lenders including Credit Suisse reported profits that beat estimates, and minutes showed the Bank of England may reconsider the case for an interest-rate cut.

In Dublin, however, it was pretty much an uneventful day in terms of activity, according to one broker. “No one is looking to buy our market,” he said.

DUBLIN

THE ISEQ index was little changed on light volumes, adding just 0.1 per cent. CRH had a good day, according to one broker, closing up 1.11 per cent at €15.46, while Smurfit Kappa also had a run, advancing 2.14 per cent to close at €5.44.

Exploration company Providence Resources was among the big fallers, dropping 4.67 per cent to €7.75, while at the other end of the spectrum, building materials group Grafton jumped 3.36 per cent to €2.80.

INM fell 1.71 per cent on news of restructuring of the company’s South African operations. According to one analyst, “it had a bit of a run but on light trading”.

LONDON

BRITAIN’S benchmark index closed at nearly its highest level in two weeks as Bank of England minutes showed policy makers may reconsider the case for an interest-rate cut. The FTSE 100 Index rose 1 per cent, at the close in London, the highest since July 5th.

Tullow Oil gained 3.3 per cent after saying it discovered oil offshore Ghana, while Fresnillo added 1.6 per cent after reporting a 15 per cent increase in gold production.

Olympic security firm G4S enjoyed some reprieve, closing 4.9p higher, at 244.9p, having fallen sharply over the previous four sessions. On Tuesday, G4S chief executive Nick Buckles said the staffing debacle surrounding the London Olympics had been a “humiliating shambles”.

Ashmore increased 2.6 per cent, to 330.3 pence, after Goldman Sachs raised its recommendation for the UK fund manager to buy from neutral.

Segro, the UK’s largest publicly traded owner of industrial properties, declined the most in two months after the tenant of a German industrial property filed for insolvency.

Segro fell as much as 2.3 per cent, to 237 pence, in London trading, the most since May 4th, after the company said in a statement it might not be able to replace the rent from Frankfurt-based Neckermann. The stock was down 1 per cent at the close.

The volume of shares changing hands in FTSE 100 companies was 24 per cent lower than its 30-day average.

EUROPE

STOCKS GAINED for the third time in four days after lenders including Credit Suisse reported profits that beat estimates.

Credit Suisse, the second-biggest Swiss bank, jumped 4.5 per cent after announcing a higher cost cutting-target and boosting capital. Bankia surged 15 per cent after economy minister Luis de Guindos said Spain would block banks selling preferred stocks to retail investors.

ASML Holding was among the main gainers on a measure of technology stocks.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index climbed 1 per cent to 258.66.

Ericsson rose 2.2 per cent to 60.20 kroner, reversing an earlier decline of as much as 5.1 per cent. The biggest maker of mobile network equipment reported second-quarter profit that missed analysts’ estimates, as wireless carriers curbed spending to cope with a slowing global economy.

Stocks gained 11 per cent from this year’s low on June 4th as the European Central Bank and People’s Bank of China cut their benchmark interest rates and euro zone leaders eased repayment rules for Spanish banks. France’s CAC 40 climbed 1.8 per cent. German stocks rose to an almost 11-week high, with the DAX up 1.6 per cent, the highest since May 3rd.

Puma, Europe’s second-largest sporting-goods maker, fell the most in two years after cutting its forecasts for sales and profit.

US

MARKETS IN the US rose for a second day as industrial and technology shares rallied on earnings while a jump in housing starts bolstered confidence in real estate.

Technology stocks had the biggest advance out of 10 groups in the Standard and Poor’s 500 index as Intel jumped 3.6 per cent after posting profit that topped projections, while scaling back its annual sales forecast.

Amphenol rallied 15 per cent for the biggest gain in the SP 500. WW Grainger led gains in industrial stocks, rising 11 per cent.

Honeywell rose 7.1 per cent, pacing gains in industrial companies, after the company reported profit that exceeded analysts’ estimates.

Technology stocks had the biggest advance out of 10 groups in the SP 500. Intel jumped 2.5 per cent after posting earnings that beat estimates while scaling back its annual sales forecast.

EMC rallied 9.8 per cent after announcing a new chief executive officer at VMWare, the software maker in which it owns a majority stake. – (Additional reporting Bloomberg)