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Gulf Today Report

European stock gained on Monday following talks by the UK and EU to extend talks on post-Brexit trade beyond the self-imposed deadline.

London shares rose 0.4 per cent but gains were capped by the strong pound, which weighs on profits of dollar-earning multinationals listed in the British capital.

Frankfurt stocks jumped 1.2 per cent and Paris gained 1.1 per cent in early afternoon eurozone deals.

 Although the Brexit trade talk is moving at a slow pace and neither party wants to be the first to throw in the towel, the rollout of vaccine is keeping traders optimistic. 

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Asian shares

Asian shares gain following Japan’s central bank report on encouraging improvement in business sentiment.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 climbed 0.6% and shares were also higher in Shanghai, Seoul and Sydney. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng declined. 

The data showed improvement in all categories, with conditions of large manufacturers rising to minus 10 from minus 27. 

Additionally, all categories from manufacturing and nonmanufacturing show recovery.