London Stock Exchange gains from firms raising more capital

LONDON (Reuters) - The London Stock Exchange said on Thursday it has made good progress since the start of its financial year as firms raised more capital on its markets and daily trading on its flagship British stock market rose 5 percent.

In a pre-close statement, the exchange said total equity capital raised in the five months to end-August reached 9.3 billion pounds, compared with 4 billion pounds the year earlier. The pipeline for further issuance was encouraging, the statement added.

As well as UK equity markets, trading in fixed income increased and the LCH.Clearnet business in which it acquired a majority stake in May, delivered strong growth, the statement said.

Its weak spots included its Italian business, where daily equity trading volumes fell 7 percent year-on-year, and derivatives, where volumes sank 31 percent.

(Reporting by Clare Hutchison, editing by Steve Slater)