Morning Euro Markets Bulletin

ADVFN  Morning Euro Markets Bulletin Daily world financial news Wednesday, 18 February 2015 09:59:12 Monitor Quote Charts News CFD's Spreadbetting Free BB   Sponsored by: Learn To Trade Learn tried & tested strategies that are proven to increase your returns. Book a workshop near you, Click Here London Market Report FTSE 100 Euronext Dax perf CAC 40 Please click on the images to view our interactive charts London open: Greek hopes send FTSE to 15-year high as stocks near record levels UK stocks were trading at a 15-year high on Wednesday morning, nearing record levels on the back of hopes that Greece will bow into international pressure and request a bailout extension. The FTSE 100 was up 0.2% at 6,913 in early deals. The last time the index has closed above this level was on 31 December 1999 when it settled at a record high of 6,930.20. The intraday record of 6,950.60 was reached on that same day. Reports that Greece will go ahead with a request for a bailout extension have lifted sentiment among investors overnight, as the nation nears its expiry of its current €240bn aid agreement at the end of the month. Ahead of a Friday deadline to agree a deal with Eurozone finance ministers, Athens is said to be preparing a temporary loan agreement rather than a continuation of its existing bailout which includes strict austerity measures and controversial reforms. A meeting with the Eurogroup on Monday was called off early after Greek leaders rejected a proposal to extend its current aid package. Connor Campbell, analyst at Spreadex, said: "This move resembles the sorely needed compromise that has been lacking for much of the past two weeks, and the Eurozone indices have taken this sentiment to heart, creeping into the green after the bell." As for Wednesday's economic calendar, the main events will be the release of minutes from the latest policy meetings at the Bank of England and Federal Reserve. UK labour-market data and US housing figures are also due out. Tesco names new chairman Supermarket giant Tesco rose after revealing that it would be appointing Dixons Carphone's chairman John Allan as the replacement of current chair Richard Broadbent who announced his resignation last year. Allan will be leaving his position at Dixons Carphone and also plans to step down as a non-executive director at Royal Mail. Homebuilder Galliford Try impressed with strong revenue and profit growth in its first six half, which allowed management to hike the interim dividend by 47%. Coca-Cola HBC, the Greece-based drinks bottler, enjoyed improved volumes and lower sugar and oil costs in the final few months of the year but earnings were hit by worse currency effects than were expected, causing shares to fall early on. Engine maker Rolls-Royce was being pressured lower after JPMorgan Cazenove analysts downgraded their recommendation on the stock to 'underweight' and cut their target from 840p to 800p. 43% - 53% Return on Investment Become an armchair investor with this established 4-year London property investment bond and earn up to 25% p.a! Register here for further information Market Movers techMARK 3,106.26 -0.19% FTSE 100 6,840.53 -0.24% FTSE 250 16,871.39 +0.06% FTSE 100 - Risers Fresnillo (FRES) 847.50p +0.83% HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 605.80p +0.78% Tesco (TSCO) 243.75p +0.56% Ashtead Group (AHT) 1,091.00p +0.46% London Stock Exchange Group (LSE) 2,402.00p +0.42% Diageo (DGE) 1,846.50p +0.38% BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,595.00p +0.38% Imperial Tobacco Group (IMT) 3,008.00p +0.37% AstraZeneca (AZN) 4,484.00p +0.35% Weir Group (WEIR) 1,864.00p +0.32% FTSE 100 - Fallers Sports Direct International (SPD) 655.50p -3.46% Royal Mail (RMG) 433.70p -3.19% InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 2,523.00p -2.51% Coca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH) 1,170.00p -1.85% Travis Perkins (TPK) 1,952.00p -1.31% Whitbread (WTB) 4,948.00p -1.24% Hammerson (HMSO) 677.50p -1.09% Barclays (BARC) 256.00p -1.08% Aggreko (AGK) 1,640.00p -0.97% Kingfisher (KGF) 339.70p -0.96% FTSE 250 - Risers Brit (BRIT) 302.20p +10.21% Wood Group (John) (WG.) 674.50p +7.06% Bwin . party Digital Entertainment (BPTY) 94.65p +5.17% Smith (DS) (SMDS) 334.10p +3.69% Just Eat (JE.) 365.20p +2.79% Petrofac Ltd. (PFC) 826.00p +1.98% Howden Joinery Group (HWDN) 435.50p +1.66% Genus (GNS) 1,297.00p +1.57% Enterprise Inns (ETI) 112.10p +1.54% Allied Minds (ALM) 499.00p +1.48% FTSE 250 - Fallers Vedanta Resources (VED) 544.50p -2.94% Afren (AFR) 6.83p -2.36% Zoopla Property Group (WI) (ZPLA) 185.00p -2.27% SSP Group (SSPG) 276.60p -2.26% Game Digital (GMD) 255.00p -1.70% Rank Group (RNK) 183.76p -1.68% Grafton Group Units (GFTU) 722.00p -1.63% TSB Banking Group (TSB) 265.00p -1.38% Spire Healthcare Group (SPI) 312.30p -1.36% UK Event Calendar Wednesday February 18 INTERIMS A&J Mucklow Group, Galliford Try INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE Redcentric INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS Building Permits (US) (13:30) Capacity Utilisation (US) (14:15) FOMC Interest Rate Minutes (US) (19:00) Housing Starts (US) (13:30) Industrial Production (US) (14:15) MBA Mortgage Applications (US) (12:00) Producer Price Index (US) (13:30) Q4 TBC Bank Joint Stock Company GDR (REGS) FINALS Coca-Cola HBC AG (CDI), TBC Bank Joint Stock Company GDR (REGS) IMSS Sports Direct International AGMS Titon Holdings UK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS BoE Interest Rate Minutes (09:30) Claimant Count Rate (09:30) Unemployment Rate (09:30)   Will you be able to retire in comfort? Download the 15-Minute Retirement Plan by Fisher Investments.   Click here to download! Europe Market Report FTSE 100 Euronext Dax perf CAC 40 Europe open: Stocks rise amid reports Greece will reach bailout agreement European stocks gained amid reports that Greece may be nearing an agreement on debt negotiations with its Eurozone creditors. Greece is reportedly considering asking for a six-month extension to its bailout agreement, which ends on 28 February. The new Greek government is set to make the request on Wednesday, according to source cited by newswires, which would ease a standoff with creditors. In the UK, the Bank of England at 09:30 GMT releases the minutes of its Monetary Policy Committee meeting held on 5-6 February when the central bank kept interest rates at a record low of 0.5% and asset purchases at £375bn. UK jobs data will be released alongside the minutes. The unemployment rate is expected to be held at 2.8% in the three months to December. Jobless claims are forecast to have fallen by 25,000 in January. Analysts estimate employers added 50,000 jobs and weekly earnings rose 1.8% in the quarter to December. In the US, the Federal Reserve publishes minutes of its meeting on 27-28 January when the central bank signalled an interest rate hike in June. UBS said it anticipated the Fed "will come out more hawkish than the market expects in the coming weeks (the two key dates are the Fed minutes on February 18th and Yellen's Humphrey Hawkins testimony on February 24th)". The euro fell 0.08% to $1.1402. Carlsberg rises on CEO appointment Carlsberg A/S fizzed up after the brewer named Cees 't Hart as its new chief executive officer. PSA Peugeot Citroen revved higher as the carmaker reported its first annual profit in three years after slashing costs. Vivendi SA advanced as the French company received an offer of €3.9bn for its 20% interest in Numericable-SFR from the cable company and Altice France. Credit Agricole SA rallied as France's third-largest bank posted better-than-expected fourth-quarter profit. Swissquote offers CFD Trading, an efficient mean of trading indices, commodities and currencies. You can trade on the market whether you think it will go UP or Down! Think the DAX will go Down? Short the DAX… Try CFD Trading with a Free Practice Account losses can exceed your deposit. US Market Report US close: Wall Street edges higher ahead of Fed minutes, ECB decision on ELA US stocks ended the session higher on sustained optimism that the Eurozone would finally find a way to "muddle through" in its dealings with Greece. On Tuesday Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis said there was still enough time to reach a "very good outcome", ahead of the next meeting on Friday. Some reports also indicated the ECB would finally renew Greek banks' access to emergency credit lines. The Nasdaq Composite ended the session higher by 5.43 points to 4,899, while the S&P 500 has settled 3.35 points higher by the close, at 2,100. The Dow Jones Industrials finished up by 28.23 points at 18,048. Fed policy-makers may be turning a corner Significantly, over the weekend US Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester advocated removing the Federal Reserve's pledge to stay "patience" when deciding to raise the Fed funds rate. “I want June to be a viable option,” Mester told The Wall Street Journal in an interview. “That is why I would like to see the language change.” That came as some analysts cautioned that the US central bank might be about to turn somewhat more hawkish. The Federal Reserve was set to publish the minutes of its last policy meeting on Wednesday. Slightly weaker than expected economic data In other news, a report showed manufacturing in the New York area grew at a slower pace in February. The so-called Empire State general activity index fell to 7.78 from 9.95 in January, compared to estimates of 9. Meanwhile, the National Association of Home Builders' housing market index unexpectedly fell from 57 to a four-month low of 55 in February, showing that builders view market conditions as less favourable than the month before. Analysts had expected a pick-up to 58. Waste Management, Medtronic, Goodyear ... Shares in Waste Management Inc. jumped as the company reported fourth-quarter earnings that came in solidly ahead of analysts’ expectations. Medtronic advanced 3.7%, leading health-care stocks higher. The world’s biggest maker of heart-rhythm devices managed to surpass analysts estimates. Brewers (4.23%), Non-ferrous metals (3.25%) and Waste&Disposal (2.64%). Goodyear Tire & Rubber was a high riser after a one-time tax benefit of $2.2bn helped it register a net income of $2.13bn for the fourth quarter, compared with just $235m a year before. "The release of our $2.2bn US tax valuation allowance after 12 years is a major milestone for Goodyear. It marks the completion of the successful turnaround of our North America business," said chief executive Richard Crammer. Halliburton advanced following reports ValueAct Capital Management LP has purchased a new stake in the company of about 3.5%. Crude futures recover from early weakness Front month West Texas crude futures finished the session higher by 78 cents to end at $53.53 per barrel on the NYMEX. 10-year US Treasury yields gained 14 basis points to end at 2.14%. S&P 500 - Risers Waste Management Inc. (WM) $53.94 +5.17% Noble Corporation plc (NE) $19.48 +5.07% Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. (DO) $36.95 +4.94% FMC Technologies Inc. (FTI) $43.03 +4.77% Denbury Resources Inc. (DNR) $9.07 +4.73% Nabors Industries Ltd. (NBR) $13.30 +4.48% Molson Coors Brewing Co. Class B (TAP) $75.90 +4.23% Medtronic Plc (MDT) $78.07 +3.73% Ensco Plc. (ESV) $31.07 +3.46% National Oilwell Varco Inc. (NOV) $55.13 +3.32% S&P 500 - Fallers Cablevision Systems Corp. (CVC) $19.75 -4.13% ConAgra Foods Inc. (CAG) $33.76 -3.07% Newmont Mining Corp. (NEM) $24.19 -2.38% Mattel Inc. (MAT) $27.02 -2.15% Discovery Communications Inc. Class A (DISCA) $30.80 -2.07% Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO) $43.53 -2.00% Allegheny Technologies Inc. (ATI) $33.05 -1.87% AES Corp. (AES) $11.64 -1.85% Automatic Data Processing Inc. (ADP) $87.11 -1.85% Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ALXN) $178.97 -1.82% Dow Jones I.A - Risers American Express Co. (AXP) $79.08 +1.28% Intel Corp. (INTC) $34.74 +1.09% Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $100.44 +0.82% JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $60.10 +0.72% 3M Co. (MMM) $166.92 +0.59% Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $190.02 +0.54% Visa Inc. (V) $270.87 +0.46% International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) $160.96 +0.35% E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. (DD) $76.43 +0.33% Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $85.38 +0.29% Dow Jones I.A - Fallers McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $94.35 -1.36% Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $43.58 -0.66% Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $85.49 -0.48% Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $41.81 -0.43% Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $29.31 -0.41% Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) $93.05 -0.34% Chevron Corp. (CVX) $112.40 -0.34% Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $49.17 -0.29% Nike Inc. (NKE) $91.86 -0.20% Pfizer Inc. (PFE) $34.58 -0.17% Nasdaq 100 - Risers Analog Devices Inc. (ADI) $58.81 +3.09% Akamai Technologies Inc. (AKAM) $70.36 +2.31% Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD) $103.84 +1.90% Activision Blizzard Inc. (ATVI) $23.49 +1.64% Altera Corp. (ALTR) $36.24 +1.63% Priceline Group Inc (PCLN) $1,120.99 +1.60% Biogen Idec Inc. (BIIB) $397.91 +1.60% Garmin Ltd. (GRMN) $56.81 +1.57% Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $3.89 +1.57% Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $32.33 +1.51% Nasdaq 100 - Fallers Vimpelcom Ltd Ads (VIP) $5.23 -2.61% Mattel Inc. (MAT) $27.02 -2.15% Discovery Communications Inc. Class A (DISCA) $30.80 -2.07% Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO) $43.53 -2.00% Automatic Data Processing Inc. (ADP) $87.11 -1.85% Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ALXN) $178.97 -1.82% Cerner Corp. (CERN) $69.75 -1.73% Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $375.43 -1.68% Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $208.81 -1.57% Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) $157.00 -1.47% PROVEN Trading Strategy - Currently running at 70% success rate Earn a tax free income trading, from just 20 minutes a day – no experience needed.  Our powerful trading software will help you decide when to enter trades and how to maximise profits. Register for a FREE brochure and trading guide, Click Here.  Newspaper Round Up Wednesday newspaper round-up: Windfarm project, Greek bailout, US tech terror The world's largest offshore windfarm project expected to cost between £6bn and £8bn has been approved for construction off the Yorkshire coast by the UK's energy secretary, The Guardian said. Greece is prepared to request a bailout extension of up to six months, after a long day of negotiations on Tuesday, wrote The Times. US technology companies are being recruited to fight in the war on terror by French interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve who is in Silicon Valley this week, reported The Wall Street Journal. Royal Enfield has announced a speedy expansion after receiving an endorsement from US president Barack Obama. According to The Guardian, the motorcycle company will spend $80m on two new factories. Crédit Agricole overcame a "sluggish economic environment" in its fourth quarter thanks to strong performances by its investment banking division, revealed the Financial Times. A letter endorsed by the Archbishop of Canterbury and the whole membership of the House of Bishops has called for the British public to vote in the upcoming election, claiming that democracy is failing, wrote The Times. Daily Telegraph chief political commentator Peter Oborne has resigned from the paper over accusations that it purposefully quashed stories about the HSBC tax dodge scandal to retain an advertising account, The Guardian reported.   New ADVFN Service - FREE Reports Get your free report on Isa's, Investment Trusts, Funds, Sipps Travel and Cars - FREE and Easy service CLICK HERE To advertise in the Euro Markets Bulletin please contact patrick@advfn.co.uk     To unsubscribe from this news bulletin or edit your mailing list settings click here. Registered Office/Accounts Dept: Suite 27, Essex Technology Centre, The Gable, Fyfield Road, Ongar, CM5 0GA. Customer Support +44 (0) 207 0700 961. Company registered in England and Wales: Number 2374988 VAT No. GB 549 2130 49