That stock News

A look at economic developments and activity in major stock markets around the world Thursday:

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BERLIN — The European Central Bank stood its ground and refused to be swayed by the Federal Reserve's decision to launch a bond-buying program to create new dollars and shore up the U.S. economic recovery.

The ECB, as expected, left its benchmark refinancing rate at a record-low 1 percent for the 18th straight month and appeared to remain on track to unwinding its own post-crisis programs even though unemployment across the 16 countries that use the euro is 10.1 percent — higher than the rate in the U.S.

High unemployment and tepid growth are reasons the Fed has decided to ease monetary policy further. While the Fed is pumping more money into the U.S. economy partly to get growth higher and unemployment heading downwards, the ECB is pursuing a seemingly opposite path.

In European trading, the central banks' stances helped buoy stocks and the euro. The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares rose 1.9 percent, Germany's DAX gained 1.8 percent and the CAC-40 in France was 1.7 percent higher.

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TOKYO — Asian shares also rose. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 stock index jumped 2.2 percent, Korea's Kospi rose 0.3 percent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index climbed 1.6 percent, China's Shanghai Composite Index closed up 1.9 percent at a seven-month high and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.5 percent.

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BEIJING — Unrestrained printing of dollars could spark a new global crisis, an adviser to China's central bank warned as countries braced for a flood of new capital following the Federal Reserve's decision to inject more money into the U.S. economy.

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TOKYO — World leaders head to back-to-back economic summits in Asia next week, but regional political tensions — some spawned by China's growing assertiveness — could undermine attempts to project unity amid a faltering global economic recovery.

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LONDON — The Bank of England held interest rates steady at a record low of 0.5 percent for the 20th consecutive month as the British economy shows signs of unexpected strength.

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MUMBAI, India — Shares in state-run Coal India, the world's largest coal mining company, closed up 39.7 percent on their first day of trading, a sign of robust investor interest that bodes well for the government's plan to raise $9 billion from asset sales.

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BERLIN — The German government says its tax income is expected to come in euro15.2 billion ($21.3 billion) higher than previously expected this year as the economy recovers.

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ATHENS, Greece — Greek riot police used tear gas and flash grenades to disperse hundreds of firefighters protesting outside parliament amid the country's acute financial crisis.

The central Athens clashes marked the latest protest staged by public servants on short-term contracts who now face redundancy as the government struggles to slash spending and improve public finances.

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DUBLIN — Ireland's finances came under intensifying pressure as the government — fighting to keep its majority and avoid an election — prepared to unveil a 2011 budget-cut figure billed as the biggest in Irish history.

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MADRID — Spain says it raised euro3.39 billion ($4.75 billion) in a 5-year bond auction but interest rates were up considerably since the last auction, indicating investors are still worried about the country's ability to handle its debt.

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OSLO, Norway — The Norwegian central bank says the country's vast oil fund achieved a 7.2 percent return on investments in the third quarter, following gains in global stock and bond markets.

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LONDON — Average house prices in Britain are on a downward trend despite a 1.8 percent rise in October, the country's biggest mortgage lender said.

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