Categories: EuropeInternational Investing

European Shares Top Five-Year Highs as Periphery Rally Continues

European shares top five-year highs as periphery rally continues (Reuters)

European shares reached a new 5-1/2 year high today as a third weekly gain for Portuguese and Spanish bonds fed improved sentiment in the region’s Mediterranean rim. Lackluster results from some of Wall Street’s big names on Thursday had sapped investors’ mood overnight, but Europe’s budding recovery offered a bit of countervailing optimism. After another week of steady progress, European shares were on the ascent again as they climbed 0.5 percent. London’s FTSE, Paris’s CAC 40 and Frankfurt’s Dax all made gains, and bourses in Portugal, Italy and Spain continued their rise to leave the region heading for its fourth week of gains in the past five weeks. European markets clearly are on the upswing.

Paul Dykewicz

Paul Dykewicz is the editor of StockInvestor.com and the editorial director of Eagle Financial Publications in Washington, D.C. He writes and edits for the website, as well as edits investment newsletters, time-sensitive trading alerts and other reports published by Eagle. He also is an accomplished, award-winning journalist who has written for Dow Jones, USA Today and other publications, as well as served as business editor of a daily newspaper in Baltimore. In addition, Paul is the author of the inspirational book, "Holy Smokes! Golden Guidance from Notre Dame's Championship Chaplain." He received his MBA in finance from Johns Hopkins University, where he was a two-time president of the school's Finance Club. In addition, Paul has a bachelor's degree from the University of Michigan and a master's degree in journalism from Michigan State University. Outside of work, Paul volunteers with a faith-based organization to assist the poor in Southeast Washington, D.C., to learn personal finance skills to lift themselves out of debt.