London stock market wins China boost
London's stock market rebounded Monday, with miners buoyed by solid Chinese economic growth figures, while eurozone indices were steady to slightly lower. Asia equities mostly increased in value following another record close on Wall Street before the weekend. US stocks were essentially flat to start the week, with the Dow and S&P 500 retreating a bit from Friday's records, but the the Nasdaq edging higher ahead of a heavy week of earnings. Frankfurt ended the day 0.4 percent lower as investors appeared to be avoiding risk before a European Central Bank (ECB) meeting on Thursday, while Paris closed down slightly. London's commodities-heavy FTSE 100 index however rebounded 0.4 percent as strong Chinese growth data bolstered demand hopes from the world's leading consumer of many raw materials. Shares in mining giants Anglo American and Glencore closed more than one percent higher, while Fresnillo jumped two percent in value. "The FTSE remained far and away Monday's best performer ... and is just about keeping its head above 7,400, thanks to the dual boosts of some China-inspired gains in the commodity sector and a Brexit-dragged showing from sterling," said Spreadex analyst Connor Campbell. The world's No. 2 economy expanded an annualized 6.9 percent in the second quarter, beating forecasts in an AFP survey, and indicating it is stabilizing after a long slowdown. The reading was the same as the previous three months. XTB analyst David Cheetham however sounded a note of caution on China. "Whilst there remains a high degree of skepticism over the accuracy of data points from the Far East, the initial reaction has been positive and attracted buyers into London-listed stocks with exposure to China," he said. In London, a star performer was British independent television channel ITV whose shares closed up 1.3 percent after announcing that EasyJet boss Carolyn McCall would become its chief executive from next year. EasyJet stock gained 1.4 percent. Dow members Procter & Gamble rose 0.5 percent after activist investor Nelson Peltz called for deep cost cuts and said he would seek a board seat. FedEx fell 1.6 percent after it disclosed the financial impact associated with the June software virus attack on its TNT Express unit "likely" will be material. FedEx said TNT's operations were "significantly affected." - Key figures around 2100 GMT - New York - DOW: DOWN less than 0.1 percent at 21,629.72 (close) New York - S&P 500: DOWN less than 0.1 percent at 2,459.14 (close) New York - Nasdaq: UP less than 0.1 percent at 6,314.43 (close) London - FTSE 100: UP 0.4 percent at 7,404.13 (close) Frankfurt - DAX 30: DOWN 0.4 percent at 12,587.16 (close) Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.1 percent at 5,230.17 EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 0.27 percent at 3,516.35 Hong Kong - Hang Seng: UP 0.3 percent at 26,470.58 (close) Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 1.4 percent at 3,176.46 (close) Tokyo - Nikkei 225: Closed for public holiday Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1479 from $1.1470 Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3057 from $1.3098 Dollar/yen: UP at 112.61 yen from 112.53 Oil - Brent North Sea: DOWN 49 cents at $48.42 per barrel Oil - West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 52 cents at $46.02 per barrel burs-jmb/hs
