Autos, oil shares help European stocks rally pick up pace
Reuters
Published Jan 04, 2018 03:38AM ET
Autos, oil shares help European stocks rally pick up pace
LONDON (Reuters) - A rally in European stocks picked up pace on Thursday, following the lead of Asian shares which hit a ten-year peak overnight, as better-than-expected U.S. car sales data and rising oil prices drove auto and energy stocks higher.
Gains spanning cyclical sectors including industrials (SXNP) and banks (SX7P) drove the pan-European STOXX 600 (STOXX) up 0.5 percent while euro zone stocks (STOXXE) and blue-chips rose 0.6 percent.
Germany's DAX (GDAXI) led the way with a 0.9 percent gain thanks to strong carmakers and industrials, while Britain's FTSE 100 (FTSE) hit a record high.
U.S. car sales data for December beat analysts' expectations, driving European automakers (SXAP) up 1.5 percent, leading sector gainers.
Italian carmaker Fiat Chrysler (MI:FCHA) rose 4 percent to hit a record high, among top STOXX gainers, while Daimler (DE:DAIGn), Volkswagen (DE:VOWG_p) and BMW (DE:BMWG) led the DAX.
Remy Cointreau (PA:RCOP) was a rare laggard, down 2.9 percent after Investec downgraded the stock, saying Chinese anti-corruption measures could affect consumption of costly status symbol products like cognac.
In the UK small-cap space Debenhams (L:DEB) shares sank 19 percent after a profit warning. The stock was set for its worst ever daily fall after the UK department store said price cuts failed to lure shoppers in.
Disappointment at the retailer's performance dented other UK retailers which had rallied strongly on Wednesday after Next's (L:NXT) Christmas trading beat.
Overall analysts were becoming marginally less negative on euro zone company earnings as the Q4 results season began.
(For a graphic on 'Euro zone earnings pessimism fades' click http://reut.rs/2Cma4eS)
Get The News You Want
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.