Leading European stocks climbed yesterday as US-led forces in Iraq prepared for a final push towards Baghdad.
The British FTSE 100 index recored a rise of 0.5 per cent to 3,771.1 points and the French CAC 40 index rose 1.6 per cent to 2,788.7 points. But the German DAX 30 index bucked the trend, falling 0.8 per cent to 2,569.8 points.
Dublin also benefited from the news in Baghdad, closing up 0.6 per cent to 3983.19.
The DJ Euro Stoxx 50 index of leading euro-zone shares rose 1.0 per cent to 2,182.9 points, while the euro fell to $1.0728.
However, most markets drifted off session highs after grim US jobs and services data put the pressure on Wall Street, dealers said. Wall Street had been expected to open sharply higher. However, this was stymied by data showing US unemployment benefit claims hitting their highest reading in nearly a year for the week ending March 29th. And, in a separate report, the US service sector was shown to have unexpectedly shrunk in March for the first time since January 2002. At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was 8,240.38, down 44.68 and the Nasdaq 1,396.58, down 0.14. - (AFP)
