London - London's stock market finished with a small gain Wednesday on the eve of Britain's most unpredictable election in living memory, while euro zone stocks managed to rise despite the euro spiking higher.
London's benchmark FTSE 100 index eked out a 0.09 percent gain to 6,933.74 points despite fears the election could result in weeks of brinksmanship as the two major parties struggle to cobble together workable coalitions.
"The topsy-turvy markets seen in recent weeks have been personified perfectly today, with the FTSE 100 oscillating with little sense of direction," said analyst Josh Mahony at IG Markets in London.
"With only one day to go until Election Day, markets have shown the same kind of indecision that is plaguing the 25 percent of undecided UK voters."
Meanwhile the CAC 40 in Paris rose 0.15 percent to 4,981.59 and the DAX in Frankfurt climbed 0.20 percent to 11,350.15 points, despite the euro shooting above $1.13.
Euro zone stock markets had tumbled Tuesday as the euro spiked on fears of an early end to the European Central Bank's quantitative easing (QE) stimulus programme and angst over Greece's ability to reach a deal with creditors and stay in the euro.
Sentiment on Greece was improved after Athens made a 200 million euro interest payment to the International Monetary Fund Wednesday.
The bigger challenge is an 800 million euro payment next week, which has sparked concerns of a possible Greek default and catastrophic exit from the euro.
In foreign exchange trade, the European single currency advanced to $1.1332 from $1.1185 late in New York on Tuesday.
The euro rose to 0.7444 British pence from 73.68 pence Tuesday, while the pound gained to $1.5229 from $1.5181.
"The strong upward momentum for the euro against the dollar remains intact with rising crude oil prices fuelling a shift in inflation expectations," said Derek Halpenny, currency analyst at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ.
The ECB in March launched a 60-billion-euro per month bond buying QE programme to avert the risk of dangerous deflation and kick start growth in the euro zone. It is supposed to last through September 2016.
But with prices now rising again in the euro zone, and a rebound in oil prices ensuring they will likely continue to do so, investors see a possibility for the ECB to let up on the stimulus, which has weakened the euro.
AFP
