Monday 16th March

European shares finished up for a fifth straight session, led higher by financials.

That came after Britain’s Barclays announced it had seen a strong start to 2009 and plans to sell its i-shares business for which it’s has received several expressions of interest. In addition HSBC said it will not need to raise more cash. Barclays soared 22 percent. UBS, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, BNP Paribas, Societe Generale and Banco Santander were big gainers along with insurers. Banks were also supported by comments from US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke who said he saw the economic decline in the States moderating and a recovery beginning in 2010, but risks remained. The euro is stronger against the dollar. Brent crude slid after OPEC decided at the weekend to leave existing output targets unchanged and to enforce existing curbs more strictly.More about: Markets

Copyright © 2012 euronews