Equities markets were higher in London Wednesday, as retailers made up three of the five biggest gainers on the 100.

The FTSE 100 was up 0.57 percent to 6,041.13 in London, while the FTSE 250 was 0.37 percent higher to 11,781.4 as Marks Spencer (LSE: MKS) led gains on the 100, joined by fellow clothing retailer Next (LSE: NXT) and DIY retailer Kingfisher (LSE: KGF), while there were only a total of five decliners in the sector.

Banks were also higher in London, helped by the news that banks in Germany and Italy said they would raise more capital, while online gamblers were lower, at least one airline saw gains on more passenger traffic in March, and most miners saw gains but most homebuilders saw declines.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 0.32 percent to 1,147.64, while the CAC-40 added 0.16 percent to 4,048.16, the Dax was 0.55 percent higher to 7,215.11 on factory orders that were up 2.4 percent in February, and the IBEX gained 1.56 percent to 10,845.16.

Tokyo Electric Power remained in focus in Japan as it declined again as it continued to try to take control of its nuclear reactors at its Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear power facility, which was damaged by the 11 March earthquake and tsunami in northern Japan.

The Nikkei 225 was down 0.32 percent to 9,584.37 in Tokyo, while the Topix index was 0.89 percent lower to 839.61 and the Mothers market dropped 0.86 percent to 433.62, while other decliners in the region included South Korea’s Kospi, which was down 0.17 percent to 2,126.71, while the Sensex dropped 0.38 percent to 19,612.2 in India.

Australia’s markets were higher as the SP/ASX200 and the Sydney Ordinaries each added 0.26 percent, to 4,912.9 and 5,011.4 respectively, while the Hang Seng was up 0.56 percent to 24.285.1 in Hong Kong, Singapore’s Straits Times Index was 0.75 percent higher to 3,170.33, the Shanghai Composite gained 1.14 percent to 3,001.36 after an interest rate hike in China sent shares in banks and insurers higher, and Taiwan’s Taiex added 1.69 percent to 8,851.98.

New York markets were little changed ahead of corporate earnings reports as the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.14 percent to 12,411.3 in midday trade, while the SP 500 had dropped 0.02 percent to 1,332.4 and the Nasdaq Composite was down 0.04 percent to 2,790.15.

After being up earlier in the session despite gains in US stockpiles, crude oil prices were lower in midday trade, while metals prices were up as gold remained in record territory at nearly $1,456 per troy ounce.

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