In Tokyo, markets were mixed on Thursday as the Nikkei index was down 0.1 percent, while the Topix index was up 0.1 percent.

Consumer electronics were mostly up, but retailers were generally down amid the concerns of investor concerns over restructuring.

The markets did better in the West, however: in Europe, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 0.3 percent, as the energy sector performed well.

The London markets were up as well, for the third day in a row. The FTSE 100 was up 0.6 percent and the FTSE 250- was up 0.3 percent.

One factor was a decision by the Bank of England to leave interest rates at their present level.

Rumors that Shell might acquire Woodside, an Australian oil and gas company was also seen as good news.

Shell already owns 34 percent of Woodside, so a deal was considered possible.

The U.S. markets saw gains at midday despite bad news from the pharmaceuticals industry - Merck was down 0.9 percent and Pfizer was down 1.6 percent over more concerns over risks associated with their arthritis drugs.

Crude oil prices were also up. Still, at midday the Dow Jones and the S&P 500 were both up 0.4 percent, and the Nasdaq was up 0.5 percent, all on light trading.