Ibex 35 among bourses buoyed by coordinated central bank intervention
Spain and the rest of the European stock markets as well as Wall Street rebounded strongly on Wednesday after joint action by central banks globally to inject dollar liquidity to ensure banks can continue to lend.
The move also helped ease pressure on Spain's risk premium, which fell below 400 basis points for the first time since November 14.
The coordinated move by the US Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank, the Bank of England, the Bank of Canada and the Swiss National Bank to ease strains in financial markets was limited in scope but served as a balm for nervous investors who expect further action.
fter giving up 1.27 percent at the opening, the Spanish blue-chip Ibex 35 index eventually closed up 3.96 percent at 8,449.50 points in line with the rest of Europe. The DAX in Frankfurt was up 4.98 percent, the CAC 40 in Paris added 4.22 percent. The Dow Jones was up by over three percent at the time the European markets closed.
The spread between the yield on the Spanish benchmark 10-year bond government bond and the German equivalent narrowed by 11 basis points to 395 basis points.
The euro also strengthened against the dollar at one point to over 1.35.
The markets early losses stemmed from the lack of progress made at the Ecofin meeting on Tuesday and by Standard & Poor's decision to lower its ratings for 37 major global lenders. However, they turned positive midday after China announced an easing of monetary policy.