Thursday, June 14, 2012

Wall Street up, as European shares drop

US stocks jumped on Thursday after news major central banks are preparing coordinated action if the results of Greek elections this weekend lead to turmoil in financial markets.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 155.38 points, or 1.24 percent, to 12,651.76. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 14.22 points, or 1.08 percent, to 1,329.10. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 17.72 points, or 0.63 percent, to 2,836.33.

Telecoms group Nokia and banking heavyweight Credit Suisse dragged down European shares, with many investors still shunning equities due to fears over the euro zone debt crisis.

The FTSEurofirst 300 index fell 0.3 percent to 983.78 points, recovering from an earlier intraday low of 975.24 points.

The FTSEurofirst has been within a tight trading range between 970 and 990 points established back in early May.

In Asia, Nikkei share average dipped today as investors continued to cut their exposure to risky assets, hedging against the potentially disruptive consequences of Greece's election at the weekend and Federal Reserve and G20 meetings next week. The Nikkei slipped 0.2 percent to 8,568.89.

The broader Topix index dropped 0.1 percent to 725.66 after flirting with positive territory as trading volume hit a two-week low.