GLOBAL MARKETS-Equities edge higher as political concerns weigh on sentiment

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 131.06 points, or 0.48%, to 27,665.64, the S&P 500 gained 1.78 points, or 0.05%, to 3,340.97 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 66.05 points, or 0.6%, to 10,853.55.

NEW YORK:Global equities treaded water and U.S. government bonds edged higher on Friday as investors weighed better-than-expected corporate earnings and increased M&A activity in Europe against political concerns ranging from the U.S. elections to Brexit.

Growing fears over a messy no-deal Brexit dragged sterling to 5-1/2-month lows after the European Union told Britain it should urgently scrap a plan to break their divorce pact.