Wall St notches US records as global stocks rally

Wall Street claimed fresh records as global stocks rallied anew Thursday, though London shares ended lower after the Bank of England put off an expected interest rate cut.

The push for more risk assets as fears over Britain's vote to break with the European Union subside boosted trade from Hong Kong to Sao Paulo to New York.

Frankfurt rallied 1.3 percent to close above 10,000 points for the first time since the seismic British referendum. The Paris market also rose by 1.1 percent.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average traded up 0.7 percent and the broad-based S&P 500 0.5 percent.

The prospect of a continued flow of easy money from central banks -- despite the Bank of England's Thursday decision to wait several more weeks -- supported the stocks gains and the pull away from safe assets like gold, US treasuries and the yen.

- Line IPO sparkles -

US shares, continuing this week's record-snapping streak, were bolstered when JPMorgan Chase turned in a solid second quarter earnings report that topped expectations. The bank's shares jumped 1.5 percent, pulling up other, yet-to-report banks with it. Citigroup surged 2.6 percent.

The year's largest tech IPO also dazzled. Japan-based messaging app Line, known for its cute and strong revenue-producing "stickers" surged 33 percent in opening trade on the New York Stock Exchange, starting a day before trade in Tokyo was to open.

The Bank of England's decision to demur on a widely expected cut of its key rate to below 0.50 took the wind out of London shares. The FTSE 100, which had added 1.0 percent in early trade before the decision was announced, ended 0.2 percent lower while the pound jumped 1.5 percent to $1.3344.

Looking to the likelihood of an August rate cut in Britain, Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare said the Bank of England "did nothing to take away the stimulus punch bowl from which the market has been drowning its sorrows, raising the roof, and pretty much partying like it's 1999."

In Asia, Japan's main stocks index led a regional rally to post a fourth straight gain as investors took heart from the strength of buying in New York.

The Nikkei index has now wiped out all the losses sustained after Britain's shock vote, while the yen sank further as traders await details on promised government economic stimulus.

China's yuan dropped to its lowest in nearly six years on the back of trade data showing imports and exports both fell last month, reinforcing worries about its slowing economy.

- Key figures at 2100 GMT -

New York - DOW: UP: 0.7 percent at 18,506.41 (close)

New York - S&P 500: UP 0.5 percent at 2,163.75 (close)

New York - Nasdaq: UP 0.6 percent at 5,034.06 (close)

London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.2 percent at 6,654.47 points (close)

Frankfurt - DAX 30: UP 1.4 percent at 10,068.30 (close)

Paris - CAC 40: UP 1.2 percent at 4,385.52 (close)

EURO STOXX 50: UP 1.3 percent at 2,963.07 (CLOSE)

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 1.0 percent at 16,385.89 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng: UP 1.1 percent at 21,561.06 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.2 percent at 3,054.02 (close)

Dollar/yen: UP at 105.44 yen from 104.52 yen Wednesday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3344 from $1.3144

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1117 from $1.1089