LONDON — Europe’s markets all saw strong gains in trading Friday morning.
The FTSE MIB in Milan and the CAC 40 in Paris each advanced 3 percent, to 21,205.01 and 4,478.37, respectively. The DAX in Frankfurt rose 2.7 percent to 9,681.65 and the FTSE 100 in London was up 2.4 percent to 6,104.42.
Reports pointed to investors reacting positively to U.S. Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen’s speech on Thursday, in which she indicated that the U.S. central bank plans to raise interest rates “sometime later this year.”
Europe’s markets gained as Asia’s indices had an uneven start. The Shanghai Composite Index closed down 1.6 percent to 3,092.35, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index closed up 0.4 percent to 21,186.32. The Nikkei 225 in Tokyo ended the day with a rise of 1.8 percent to 17,880.51.
It was a largely positive morning for fashion, luxury and retail stocks in Europe, too.
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Those that gained the most included Safilo Group, 5.2 percent to 10.92 euros; Yoox Group, 4.5 percent to 27 euros; LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, 4.6 percent to 150.65 euros, and Richemont, 4.5 percent to 75.75 Swiss francs.
The few that lost ground numbered Mulberry, 0.5 percent to 9 pounds; Koovs, 3.7 percent to 0.63 pounds, and Gemfields, 0.6 percent to 0.60 pounds. Esprit was down 6.6 percent to 6.11 Hong Kong dollars, after gaining ground earlier in the week when the firm reported a yearly loss of 3.68 billion Hong Kong dollars, or $477.41 million, but said that it had finished streamlining its supply base.
At 11:23 a.m. CET, the pound traded for $1.53, while the euro went for $1.21. The Swiss franc changed hands for $1.02 and the Hong Kong dollar, for $0.13.