NEW YORK (Reuters) - Global equity markets rallied on Monday to lift a gauge of world stock indexes to a fresh peak, while the euro briefly jumped to a five-month peak against the U.S. dollar as the first round of an election in France went to the market's preferred contender.
Centrist Emmanuel Macron took a big step towards the French presidency on Sunday by winning the first round of voting and qualifying for a May 7 runoff alongside far-right leader Marine Le Pen.The victory for the pro-European Union centrist Macron sent MSCI's gauge of stock indexes across the globe <.miwd00000pus> to a record high of 453.70.The blue chip euro zone STOXX 50 index <.stoxx50e> surged 4 percent, its best day in nearly two years, while France's CAC40 <.fchi> jumped 4.1 percent, its biggest daily percentage gain in almost five years.Investors were concerned a victory for Le Pen could put France on the path taken by Britain to leave the European Union. "This alleviates fears that we were going to have to navigate a French exit of the European Union," said Brian Jacobsen, chief portfolio strategist at Wells Fargo Funds Management in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin."This is a classic relief rally showing up most in financials," he said. "We cleared this hurdle and now it's a little bit more clear running." The S&P financial sector climbed 2.2 percent, its best day in almost two months. The Dow Jones Industrial Average <.dji> rose 216.13 points, or 1.05 percent, to end at 20,763.89, the S&P 500 <.spx> gained 25.46 points, or 1.08 percent, to 2,374.15 and the Nasdaq Composite <.ixic> added 73.30 points, or 1.24 percent, to 5,983.82.The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index <.fteu3> rose 2.20 percent and MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe <.miwd00000pus> gained 1.56 percent.The euro pared earlier gains, but was still up more than 1 percent against the dollar