Global markets sluggish on Middle East fears

London’s leading share index had a sluggish start this morning, while European markets fell on uncertainty over the Middle East and oil supply.

The FTSE 100 was down 0.2% at 6,070.57 in early morning trading while in Europe, Germany's Dax fell 0.33% to 7,402.48 and France's Cac 40 was down 0.28% at 4,145.61 as investors worried about rising oil prices.

In London, the FTSE's top performers were Invensys, up 2.03%, Lonmin, rising 1.57%, Hammerson, up 1.41%, Aviva, climbing 1.30% and RSA Insurance Group, up 1.05%.

Conversely, ARM Holdings fell 1.29%, Carnival dropped 1.14%, International Consolidated Airlines Group lost 1.1%, InterContinental Hotels Group slipped 0.84%, while Rio Tinto dropped 0.82%.

The US market were closed for President's Day but ended last week at a post-crisis high, boosted by strong company earnings.

The Dow Jones jumped 0.6% to close at 12,391, while the S&P 500 was up 0.19% at 1,343.01. Caterpillar was the best performer, rising 2.4% on the back of high machinery sales.

In Asia, the Nikkei 225 delivered gains for the fifth consecutive day, closing up 6.16 points at 10,842.80. Energy and commodities stocks outperformed, with Inpex, the largest oil and gas group in Japan, rising 1.4%.