By Mia Lamar
International companies trading in New York closed higher
Monday, helped by gains for mining and energy companies.
The Bank of New York index rose 1.2% to 139.99.
Gold prices increased 0.9% to settle at $1,467.40 a troy ounce,
as a decline in the dollar helped support commodity prices.
Meanwhile, crude-oil prices added 1.6% to settle at $94.50 a
barrel.
Shares of South African gold miner Harmony Gold Mining Co. (HMY,
HAR.JO) rose 4% to $4.90. Shares of British oil giant BP PLC (BP,
BP.LN) climbed 1% to $42.63.
The European index rose 1.3% to 131.94.
Shares of Spain's Banco Santander (SAN, SAN.MC) rallied 2.5% to
$7.32 after the resignation of Chief Executive Alfredo Saenz. Mr.
Saenz's departure followed a wave of criticism of a recent move by
the Spanish government to relax its standards of conduct for
bankers to allow Mr. Saenz to keep his job despite a criminal
conviction.
Elsewhere, shares in Lloyds Banking Group (LYG, LLOY.LN) rose
2.1% to $3.35 after the company it sold its unprofitable Spanish
retail banking operations. People familiar with the matter told the
Wall Street Journal that the British lender is also looking to sell
part of its international wealth-management operations.
The emerging markets index gained 1.1% to 279.43.
Heavily indebted Russian steelmaker Mechel OAO (MTL, MTLR.RS)
said Monday it had signed several loan agreements with Gazprombank
(GZPR.RS) worth $1 billion, but that the deal wouldn't add to their
existing leverage. U.S. listed-shares of Mechel--which reported net
debt of $9.4 billion at the end of 2012--jumped 7.1% to $4.10.
The Latin American index rose 1% to 321.19.
Brazilian state-run oil company Petrobras (PBR, PETR3.BR) said
an offshore oil field operated by U.S. oil major Chevron Corp.
(CVX) shuttered since March 2012 because of an oil spill could
restart production this week.
Chevron is in the final stages of obtaining authorization from
local oil regulators and should open the taps "this week," said
Jose Miranda Formigli, Petrobras's exploration and production
director. "Obviously, as a partner in the field, we're very
interested in the return of this production." The company's
U.S.-listed shares rose 6.7% to $19.24.
The Asian index rose 1% to 143.23.
Shares of Australia's Westpac Banking Corp. (WBK, WBC.AU) rose
2.5% to $172.47 amid a broader rally for the country's banking
shares. Australia's near-record-low interest rates have made cash
investments less attractive, and in turn increased the appeal of
banking stocks with comparatively high dividend yields.
Write to Mia Lamar at mia.lamar@dowjones.com