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Friday, March 08 11:36:08
World shares hit their highest level since June 2008 and the dollar touched a fresh 3-1/2-year high against the yen on Friday, ahead of U.S. jobs data expected to point to a continuing pick up in the world's biggest economy.
China also gave markets a boost as official data showed February exports grew 21.8 percent versus a year ago, more than double the expected rise.
European shares, which have rebounded strongly after last week's Italian election and U.S. spending cuts-related wobble, were up 0.5 percent by mid-morning and on track for their biggest weekly gain since the start of the year.
Japan's Nikkei hit a 4-1/2 year high in Asian trading and 0.3, 0.7 and 0.5 rises by London's FTSE 100, Paris's CAC-40 and Frankfurt's DAX helped MSCI's world share index to its highest level since late June 2008.