January 21, 2006	Saturday	Zilhaj 20, 1426

LONDON, Jan 20: European stock exchanges rose on Friday, with energy majors powered by a spike in oil prices and after an overnight bounce on Wall Street, dealers said.

London’s FTSE 100 index of leading shares gained 0.58 per cent to 5,726.40 points in early morning trade, in Paris the CAC 40 added 0.46 per cent to 4,836.40, and Frankfurt’s DAX 30 rose 0.17 per cent to 5,440.20 points.

The DJ Euro Stoxx 50 index of leading eurozone shares won 0.48 per cent to 3,610.57 points.

The euro stood at 1.2082 dollars.

Wall Street had bounced back from four losing sessions on Thursday as investors cheered strong earnings and failed to be discouraged by a new audiotape released by al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden.

On Friday, oil prices raced past 67 dollars per barrel as tensions in Nigeria and Iran, and a purported threat to the United States by bin Laden, overshadowed news of rising US stockpiles.

New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in February, gained 28 cents to 67.11 dollars per barrel.

High crude prices bite into corporate profits and raise investor concerns that increased costs may hamper global economic growth. But traditionally the energy sector is given a shot in the arm.

In London trade, BP jumped 1.43 per cent to 672.5 pence, BG Group soared 1.49 per cent to 612.5 pence and Royal Dutch Shell’s ‘B’ shares added 1.04 per cent to 1,940 pence.

Over in Paris, French oil giant Total won 1.13 per cent to 223.5 euros.

Shire Pharmaceuticals meanwhile surged 6.35 per cent to 888 pence in London on news of a deal with generic drug company Impax over Adderall XR, a treatment for hyperactive children which generates over half of its sales and profits.

In Thursday’s US trading, sentiment was bolstered by upbeat earnings from chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices, drugs giant Pfizer and investment bank Merrill Lynch.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.24 per cent to close at 10,880.71 points.

The tech-dominated Nasdaq, meanwhile, rallied 0.97 per cent to 2,301.81 and the Standard and Poor’s 500 broad-market index added 0.56 per cent to 1,285.04.

Over in Asia, Tokyo’s benchmark Nikkei-225 index closed flat Friday at 15,696.69 points as investors took a cautious stance before the weekend and after recent chaos sparked by a probe into Internet firm Livedoor.

Hong Kong’s key Hang Seng Index closed flat at 15,662.08 points in cautious trade, with investors keeping a wary eye on oil prices, dealers said.—AFP