Spread Betting Markets Snapshot

• FTSE 100 rose 0.1% to end at 5,796.1.
• FTSEurofirst 300 index gained 0.2%, to close at 1,059.4.
• DJIA slipped 0.1% to close at 12,705.4. NASDAQ gained 0.4% to settle at 2,859.7. S&P 500 rose 0.1% to 1,325.5.
• Nikkei 225 index is trading 0.2% lower, at 8,863.4.
• In Asia, crude oil for March delivery is trading 0.1% or $0.08 higher at $96.44 per barrel.
• At 0400 BST today, the GBP is trading marginally higher against the USD at $1.5809, 0.1% higher against the EUR at €1.2043, and marginally higher against the JPY at ¥120.45.
• For more on trading stock market indices see spread betting on indices.

UK Spread Betting Markets

• UK markets finished higher yesterday, as reports of merger activities in the mining sector and better-than-expected drop in US jobless claims overshadowed disappointing corporate earnings.
• Miners, Xstrata and Glencore jumped 9.9 and 6.9%, respectively, after reports confirmed that the two firms were in merger talks.
• Vedanta Resources, Rio Tinto and Randgold Resources rose between 1.6% and 5.7%.
• Imperial Tobacco gained 0.2%, after Nomura Securities upgraded the stock to “Neutral” from “Reduce”.
• Anglo American gained 3.6%, amid speculation that the company would likely be a takeover target for the combined entity of Glencore and Xstrata.
• International Power edged up 0.5%, amid speculation that Suez would acquire the remaining shares in the company.
• Unilever, AstraZeneca and Royal Dutch Shell dropped between 1.2% and 4.4%, following disappointing earnings reports.
• FTSE 100 rose 0.1% to end at 5,796.1, while FTSE 250 gained 0.6% to close at 11,086.5.
• Glencore and Xstrata rose 6.9% and 9.9% respectively, after confirmation that the firms were in merger talks.
• Vedanta Resources surged 5.8%, buoyed by the merger news of its peers.
• Anglo American rose by 3.6% on speculation that the company would likely be a takeover target for the combined entity of Xstrata and Glencore.
• Unilever slipped 4.4%, after the company’s fourth-quarter revenue growth missed market estimates.
• AstraZeneca dropped 3.4%, after the company warned that 2012 would be a challenging year for the pharmaceutical industry.
• For more on trading UK shares see spread betting on UK shares.

Forex Spread Betting Markets

• At 0400 BST today, the GBP is trading marginally higher against the USD at $1.5809, 0.1% higher against the EUR at €1.2043, and marginally higher against the JPY at ¥120.45.
• The EUR is trading 0.1% lower against the USD at $1.3128. The USD gained against the EUR amid speculation that a report would show that US employers added more jobs in January.
• The EUR is trading 0.1% lower against the JPY at ¥100.02, as finance ministers from Germany, Finland, Luxembourg and the Netherlands meet in Berlin today to discuss current issues.
• The EUR is trading lower against all its major peers amid continued concerns about the Greece debt problems, as the country and its creditors struggle to reach an agreement on a debt swap deal.
• The AUD and the NZD declined as lingering concerns about the eurozone, decreased demand for higher-yielding currencies.
• The JPY traded flat against the USD, amid speculation that the country would intervene the markets to weaken it.
• Yesterday, the GBP / EUR ended flat against after rising initially, amid speculation that the European leaders would fail to contain the region’s debt crisis boosting demand for the relatively safe UK currency.
• For more on trading the forex markets see forex spread betting.

Commodities Spread Betting Markets

• Gold for immediate delivery is trading 0.1% lower today, at $1755.93 per ounce.
• Gold for April delivery rose 0.6% or $9.80 to end at $1,759.30 per ounce yesterday, as demand for the precious metal as an alternative asset increased. This came amid lingering concerns about Greece’s debt write-downs and after US Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke supported US central bank’s decision to hold interest rates at record-low levels at a hearing before the House Budget Committee.
• In Asia, crude oil for March delivery is trading 0.1% or $0.08 higher at $96.44 per barrel.
• Yesterday, crude oil for March delivery fell 1.9% or $1.84 to end at $95.75 per barrel. This came as investors remained concerned about demand after reports on Wednesday showed a higher-than-expected increase in US crude inventories.
• For more on commodities trading see commodities spread betting.