Markets react to improved global economy data

A POSITIVE mix of strong employment figures and retail sales data from the US had a domino effect on the international markets yesterday, with concern over the health of the global economy lifting somewhat.

The latest jobs and sales data from the other side of the Atlantic led to marginal early gains on Wall Street; while the positive knock-on effect was even more noticeable in Europe with the main markets in this part of the world rising to a two-week high.

London’s FTSE was up by nearly 2%, to 5,211 points – aided by a near 6% jump for insurance giant and Hibernian parent, Aviva – the CAC in Paris gained 1.6% and Frankfurt’s DAX was up over the 6,000 mark.