World markets report

Defensive stocks led the FTSE 100 higher yesterday, lifting the index 0.3% to 5,513.

Pharmaceuticals were encouraged by the prospect of a Republican victory in Massachusetts which would hamper Barack Obama's healthcare reforms. GSK rose 1.9%, AstraZeneca climbed 1.7% and Shire added 0.4%.

Commodity stocks made modest gains, with BP rising 0.1, Royal Dutch Shell up 0.3%, but BG Group flat. Among miners, Lonmin gained 0.75%, while majors Xstrata and Rio Tinto rose 0.1% and 0.2% respectively.

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Banks were largely lower, with HSBC down 0.1%, Barclays falling 1.8% and Lloyds the day's biggest faller, down 2.6%. But RBS bucked the trend, however, finishing among the day's top performers, rising 3%.

Read the latest stock market news and charts here.

Europe

In Europe, the Paris CAC 40 climbed 32 points to 4,009; and the German Xetra Dax was 58 points higher at 5,976.

US

In the US, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.1% to 10,725; the S&P 500 gained 1.25% to 1,150; and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.4% to 2,320.

Asia

In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 0.3% to 10,737; while the broader Topix index lost 0.5%to close at 944. In China, the Shanghai Composite index slipped 2.9% to 3,151; and the CSI 300 closed down 3.2% at 3,394.

Commodities

Brent spot was trading at $76.27 early today, and in New York, crude oil was at $78.20. Spot gold was trading at $1,132 an ounce, silver was at $18.60 and platinum was at $1,637.

Currencies

In the forex markets this morning, sterling was trading against the US dollar at 1.6268 and against the euro at 1.1452. The dollar was trading at 0.704 against the euro and 90.86 against the Japanese yen.

UK news

And today, the Bank of England governor, Mervyn King, warned of tough times ahead for Britain, as the fallout from the financial crisis leaves a legacy of high unemployment and stagnating pay. Speaking to the University of Exeter, Mr. King said "The patience of UK households is likely to be sorely tried over the next couple of years", adding: "there is little scope for growth in real take-home pay, which may remain weak even as output recovers.