Lagardère rise
The media arm of Lagardère of France reported a 2.5 per cent rise in 2005 like-for-like sales to €7.9 billion (£5.4 billion), aided by its books business and its radio and television units. The group confirmed its target for media operating profit growth of 5 to 9 per cent.
Dollar boosted
The dollar was boosted last night after Alan Greenspan’s reportedly upbeat assessment of America’s economy at a private event. The former Federal Reserve chief reportedly said that markets may be underestimating future interest-rate rises.
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Dow surges
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 1.01 per cent, or 108.86 points, its biggest rise since the year’s opening session on January 3, to end at 10,858.62. Investors were encouraged by talk of a sale at Pfizer and better than expected results from Cisco Systems.