Most European stock markets closed with strong gains this evening despite persistent fears for the health of the global economy, but the Dublin market ended slightly lower.
London's FTSE surged 202 points (5.2%) to close at 4,063, led by a bounce in mining and energy shares. In Paris the CAC added 4.7% to 3,330 while the Frankfurt Dax finished 3.4% higher at 4,781.
Dublin's ISEQ ended down seven points at 2,720, led by building stocks after more warnings after more gloomy predictions about the housing market. Grafton lost 6% to close at €2.16, while CRH fell 5.8% to €14.04. Banks were mixed, with Irish Life & Permanent falling 15% to €3.47.
On Wall Street, trading was volatile after Thursday's strong rally, with good results from Google offset by weak housing and consumer sentiment data. The Dow Jones was down 32 points at 8,947, while the Nasdaq was up two at 1,719.
Japan's Nikkei index ended 2.78% higher at 8,694, clawing back some of the previous day's loss of over 11%, which was the biggest drop in two decades. But other Asian markets were weaker, with Hong Kong down over 4% and Sydney dropping 1.1%.
