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Equity markets

London attack hits stocks

Equity markets across the globe slipped lower and gold prices rallied yesterday as investors followed the news of terrorist attacks against commuters in London that killed at least 33 people there. US Treasury prices rose in reaction to explosions in London, lowering bond yields while British pounds weakened, reflecting fears over new attacks in Europe.

Equity markets

WSE recovers from panic selling

Blue-chip WIG20 index closed at 2050 points, some

1.4 percent below Wednesday?s close yesterday, recovering from mid-morning sell-off right after the London attacks that pushed the main index to just 2014 points,

a 3 percent loss. Trading volume rose to more than

800 million zloty, while the number of index futures

contracts traded, at more than 44 000, hit an all-time

high since the instrument begun trading in late 1990?s.

Petrochemicals

Grupa Lotos on track to meet forecasts

Poland?s no. 2 oil refinery, Gdańsk-based Grupa Lotos says it is well under way to meet this year?s earnings and sales targets of 404 million and 8.4 billion

zloty respectively. Lotos signed several multi-year contracts totaling 11 billion zloty in the last month alone, com-pany spokesman Marcin Zachowicz said. Lotos expects to join WIG20 blue-chip index soon, the company said.

Privatization

TF Silesia to post huge gains on Częstochowa sale

Towarzystwo Finansowe Silesia, a government agency

set up several years ago to help restructure industrial

conglomerates in its home region, stands to gain

at least 250 million zloty from the sale of Huta Częstochowa steel plant to Ukraine?s Donbas Industrial Association. The Ukrainian group has agreed to pay

as much as 1.25 billion zloty ($362 million) for Częstochowa?s assets. Most of that amount will then

be used to pay off Częstochowa?s numerous creditors.