LONDON - Britain's index of 100 leading shares rose as upbeat miners and a retreat in US bond yields from five-year highs soothed sentiment in stock markets.

The FTSE 100 closed at 6559.6 points, up 39.2 or 0.60 percent.ROUNDUP:EUROFIRSTEUROPE - European shares ended Wednesday's session on a positive note, boosted by mining and oil stocks, while merger activity continued to bubble away in the broader market.

The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index ended up 0.4 percent at 1,580.52 points.ROUNDUP:EUROmarketsFRANKFURT - The DAX index ended at 7680.76 points, up 2.5 or 0.03 percent.

PARIS - The CAC-40 index closed at 5934.27 points, up 36.11 or 0.61 percent.

ZURICH - The Swiss market index closed at 9146.07 points, down 34.9 or 0.38 percent.

MILAN - The All Share Mibtel index closed at 32756 points, up 110 or 0.34 percent.ROUNDUP:nikkeiTOKYO - The Nikkei average slipped 0.16 percent as Mitsui Fudosan and other property firms fell on concerns about rising interest rates, while a slide in metals prices hit metal shares.

The Nikkei shed 28.14 points to close at 17,732.77.ROUNDUP:hang sengHONG KONG - Hong Kong blue chips fell 0.3 percent, with trade stuck in a tight range amid interest rate worries, but stocks scaled back early losses thanks to strong gains in the mainland share market.

The Hang Seng Index closed down 57.64 points at 20,578.75.ROUNDUP:asxSYDNEY - Australian shares slipped 0.95 percent to a six-week closing low, as growing concerns that global interest rates would rise weighed on financial stocks, while mining firms fell on a slide in base metal prices.

The S&P/ASX 200 index dropped 59.4 points to close at 6,180.7.ROUNDUP:south africaJOHANNESBURG - South African stocks rebounded, led by mining shares like African Rainbow Minerals as yields on global bonds pulled back.

The All-share index closed at 28602.95 points, up 303.62 or 1.07 percent. The All Gold index closed at 2582.64 points, up 25.68 or 1.00 percent, while the Industrial index closed at 19399.14 points, up 129.34 or 0.67 percent.