London--Europe's main stock markets rallied Tuesday, while the euro retreated against the dollar, as investors reacted to US economic data and debt moves by Greece in resumed trading after Easter.
London's benchmark FTSE 100 index jumped 1.46 percent to 6,933.31 points compared with last Thursday's close.
Frankfurt's DAX 30 won 1.18 percent to 12,109.02 points and the CAC 40 in Paris gained 1.53 percent to 5,151.95 in afternoon trading.
In foreign exchange, the European single currency slid to $1.0855 from $1.0928 late in New York on Monday.
"Given the strong finish in US (stock) markets on Monday in reaction to the substandard US unemployment report, it is unsurprising to see European markets play catch-up," said Jasper Lawler, analyst at trading group CMC Markets.
Asian stock markets also rose as most reopened Tuesday after the long holiday weekend, in their first reaction to soft US jobs data that dampened expectations of an early US interest rate rise.
Wall Street provided a positive lead Monday as comments from a Federal Reserve official suggested any rate increases would likely be slow, while investors await the release of minutes from the bank's latest meeting.
The US Labor Department said Friday the economy added just 126,000 jobs in March, half the expected improvement and the weakest growth since December 2013.
While the data indicate a US slowdown, investors were cheered because the Fed is now unlikely to announce any rate rise until later in the year.
"The reaction in the US dollar to what was a big slowdown in the US employment growth in March has actually been fairly sanguine," Lawler said.
If the dollar returns to a downward spiral, "equities in Europe may not fare as well without the boon of a weaker euro to help export markets," he added.
AFP
