European indices moved ahead as economic and earnings figures lifted investor sentiment.
The Dax in Frankfurt jumped 145 points to 6,183 while the CAC in Paris moved 40 points higher at 3,733. The Swiss market gained 66 points to 6,575. Spain has become the latest eurozone country to unveil drastic new measures to cut its deficit and ease concerns that the problems afflicting Greece may spread. Spain’s Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero on Wednesday announced cuts in civil service wages, pensions, social welfare spending and investment.
Under the new measures, civil service pay will be slashed by 5% this year and frozen in 2011, while an earlier decision to increase pensions next year has been reversed. Subsidies for new parents will be scrapped and public investment will be reduced by €6bn between 2010 and 2011. The new steps are designed to lower the deficit to 9.3% of GDP this year and to 6.5% in 2011, down from 11.2% in 2009.
Zapatero’s announcement comes as new figures shows that Spain's first-quarter gross domestic product edged up 0.1% from the preceding quarter after contracting by 0.1% in the fourth quarter.
GDP across the 16-nation eurozone grew by 0.2% in the first three months of 2010, according to European Union statistics office Eurostat.
Germany’s economy grew for the fourth quarter in a row in the first three months of 2010, against expectations of zero growth. The economy expanded by 0.2% during the quarter, beating analysts’ expectations of stagnation during the quarter. The extremely cold weather during much of the period, which hampered construction activity, was expected to have held back growth.
On the corporate front, Dutch financial group ING Group gained after it swung back to a first quarter net profit of €1.33bn compared with a net loss of €793m last time, thanks to lower impairments and bad-debt charges.
Italian banking leader UniCredit posted a better than expected 16% rise in first quarter profit to €520m.
German insurer Allianz got a lift after announcing quarterly earnings almost quadrupled.
Deutsche Telekom net profit jumped to €767m in the three-month period from a €1.12bn loss in 2009.
Zapatero’s announcement comes as new figures shows that Spain's first-quarter gross domestic product edged up 0.1% from the preceding quarter after contracting by 0.1% in the fourth quarter.
GDP across the 16-nation eurozone grew by 0.2% in the first three months of 2010, according to European Union statistics office Eurostat.
Germany’s economy grew for the fourth quarter in a row in the first three months of 2010, against expectations of zero growth. The economy expanded by 0.2% during the quarter, beating analysts’ expectations of stagnation during the quarter. The extremely cold weather during much of the period, which hampered construction activity, was expected to have held back growth.
On the corporate front, Dutch financial group ING Group gained after it swung back to a first quarter net profit of €1.33bn compared with a net loss of €793m last time, thanks to lower impairments and bad-debt charges.
Italian banking leader UniCredit posted a better than expected 16% rise in first quarter profit to €520m.
German insurer Allianz got a lift after announcing quarterly earnings almost quadrupled.
Deutsche Telekom net profit jumped to €767m in the three-month period from a €1.12bn loss in 2009.
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