Investors breathed a sigh of relief and global stocks market moved decisively upward today as Germany appeared ready, at least legally, to help bail out its neighbors.
The S&P Retail Index rose 2.5 percent, or 12.66 points, to 512.06 as markets settled and the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 2.5 percent, or 275.56 points, to 11,414.86.
Wall Street took its lead from abroad, where the FTSE 100 in London closed up 3.1 percent, the CAC 40 in Paris finished up 3.6 percent, the DAX in Frankfurt gained 4.1 percent and the FTSE MIB in Milan rose 4.2 percent. The Nikkei 225 gained 2 percent in Tokyo and the Hang Seng Index rose 1.7 percent in Hong Kong.
A ruling from Germany’s Constitutional Court will allow Germany to contribute more funds to rescue troubled Eurozone economies. Greece and Ireland have already received economic aid and investors are worried that larger economies such as Italy might also need help. Shares that led the gains included commodities firms Tullow Oil and Petrofac in London and Renault and BNP Paribas in Paris.
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Fashion and retail stocks also made substantial gains. LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuittonrose 4.8 percent, Marcolin gained 7.9 percent, Burberry jumped 5.4 percent and online retailer ASOS rose 5.3 percent. Meanwhile, Richemont gained 7.3 percent on the back of strong sales figures released today, and the Swatch Group rose 5.5 percent.
In the U.S., Nordstrom Inc. was up 4.9 percent and Coach Inc. was ahead 4.5 percent headed into the close.