London, March 12 (AFP/APP): Equity markets mostly rose Monday on optimism over solid US jobs data and the prospect of a meeting between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, dealers said.

Asian stocks enjoyed gains across the board after Friday’s US jobs report prompted a fresh record-breaking performance on Wall Street.

Most European indices climbed but London turned flat in subdued deals on the eve of the British government’s budget update.

“Buoyed by Friday’s jobs report and a general easing of political tensions, markets are on the up again,” said Chris Beauchamp, analyst at trading firm IG.

“Sentiment, which has been bearish for weeks now, has provided another tailwind for equities.” Trump decided last week that he will meet Kim Jong Un in an unprecedented summit to discuss the secretive rogue state’s controversial nuclear programme.

The developments tempered worries about Trump’s announcement of steel and aluminium tariffs that sparked a sell-off earlier this month on worries about a trade war.

“Equity markets in Europe are higher … as the positive finish in Asia overnight has lifted sentiment,” added analyst David Madden at CMC Markets UK.

“Stock markets are still shrugging off President Trump’s tariffs for the time (being), but sentiment could change when they actually come into effect later this month.

“The US non-farm payrolls report had some positive aspects to it, but it was not impressive enough to make traders worry that the Federal Reserve would speed up its hiking cycle.”

All three main indexes in New York rose almost two percent on Friday with the Nasdaq chalking up a fresh record, erasing all the losses suffered through a tumultuous February.

Those gains extended into Asia, with Tokyo ending 1.7 percent higher, while Hong Kong climbed 1.9 percent, Shanghai finished 0.6 percent higher and Seoul put on one percent.