US shoppers lift global markets
A FRESH burst of optimism about the global economic outlook boosted world stock markets and the US dollar today. After weeks of disappointment over a lacklustre American recovery, Tuesday's news of a surge in US shop sales and bumper results from retail bellwether Wal-Mart finally gave investors something to cheer about.
In Asian markets, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 closed up 286.78 points at 11,642.97. London's FTSE 100 index opened 12.1 points ahead at 5251.6. On foreign exchanges, the dollar powered to two-week highs, pushing sterling to a low of $1.4477 and the euro to a low of 89.96 US cents.
'The shock surge in retail sales should be enough to put a floor under the dollar, at least for now,' said economist Jeremy Hawkins at Bank of America.
Retail sales leapt 1.2% in April as Americans splashed out. Wal-Mart announced a 20% jump in sales over the past three months and said it was on track for a hefty rise in full-year earnings.
