Investing.com - European stocks were higher on Wednesday, as investors eyed a key European Union summit in Brussels this week, but gains were limited by sustained worries over the capacity of euro zone leaders to advance new measures to tackle the region’s debt crisis.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 rose 0.33%, France’s CAC 40 climbed 0.48%, while Germany’s DAX 30 advanced 0.64%.
Investors remained cautious ahead of an EU summit due to begin on Thursday, amid worries the talks will not result in any effective steps to strengthen fiscal integration and allow the euro zone’s rescue funds to buy government debt.
Earlier in the week, German Chancellor Angel Merkel quashed hopes that the euro zone could issue joint euro bonds, saying the idea was "economically wrong" and "counterproductive."
Meanwhile, the yield on Spanish 10-year government bonds was at 6.87%, nearing the critical 7% threshold, which is widely viewed as unsustainable in the long term.
Moody’s ratings agency downgraded 28 Spanish banks earlier in the week, after the country formally requested up to EUR100 billion to recapitalize its struggling banking sector.
Financial stocks led gains as shares in French lenders Societe Generale and BNP Paribas rallied 1.94% and 0.87%, while Germany’s Deutsche Bank jumped 1.17%.
Spain’s rising borrowing costs and overall financial difficulties weighed on the country’s banks however, with shares in Banco Santander and BBVA tumbling 0.93% and 0.60% respectively.
Swiss healthcare company Roche added to gains, climbing 1.92%, after saying late Tuesday that it intends to close its 80-year old Nutley, New Jersey laboratory, where the sedative Valium was developed, cutting about 1,000 U.S. jobs.
Meanwhile, auto makers rose broadly, reversing Tuesday’s losses, as shares in Daimler advanced 0.51% and Volkswagen jumped 0.97%, while BMW saw shares surge 1.24%.
In London, FTSE 100 added 0.20%, supported by strong gains in the financial sector.
Shares in Lloyds Banking rallied 1.96% and the Royal Bank of Scotland surged 1.31%, while Barclays and HSBC Holdings jumped 1.13% and 0.58% respectively.
Oil and gas companies BP and Anglo America were also on the upside, with shares rising 0.33% and 0.02%.
Meanwhile, copper producer Xstrata saw shares drop 0.86% and Glencore tumbled 1.45%, as the merger deal between both companies was reportedly on the brink of collapse after Qatar, the sovereign wealth fund that has amassed a stake of over 10% in Xstrata, said late Tuesday that it wanted a higher price.
Mining groups Rio Tinto and Bhp Billiton contributed to losses, with shares falling 0.45% and 0.34% respectively.
Elsewhere, shares in BSkyb surged 1.48%, as the fate of the pay TV giant came into the spotlight amid reports of News Corp’s split into two entities, an entertainment company and a publishing firm.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a moderately higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.02% rise, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.09% increase, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.14% gain.
Later Wednesday, Germany was to produce preliminary data on consumer price inflation. The U.S. was to publish official data on durable goods orders, as well as industry data on pending home sales.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 rose 0.33%, France’s CAC 40 climbed 0.48%, while Germany’s DAX 30 advanced 0.64%.
Investors remained cautious ahead of an EU summit due to begin on Thursday, amid worries the talks will not result in any effective steps to strengthen fiscal integration and allow the euro zone’s rescue funds to buy government debt.
Earlier in the week, German Chancellor Angel Merkel quashed hopes that the euro zone could issue joint euro bonds, saying the idea was "economically wrong" and "counterproductive."
Meanwhile, the yield on Spanish 10-year government bonds was at 6.87%, nearing the critical 7% threshold, which is widely viewed as unsustainable in the long term.
Moody’s ratings agency downgraded 28 Spanish banks earlier in the week, after the country formally requested up to EUR100 billion to recapitalize its struggling banking sector.
Financial stocks led gains as shares in French lenders Societe Generale and BNP Paribas rallied 1.94% and 0.87%, while Germany’s Deutsche Bank jumped 1.17%.
Spain’s rising borrowing costs and overall financial difficulties weighed on the country’s banks however, with shares in Banco Santander and BBVA tumbling 0.93% and 0.60% respectively.
Swiss healthcare company Roche added to gains, climbing 1.92%, after saying late Tuesday that it intends to close its 80-year old Nutley, New Jersey laboratory, where the sedative Valium was developed, cutting about 1,000 U.S. jobs.
Meanwhile, auto makers rose broadly, reversing Tuesday’s losses, as shares in Daimler advanced 0.51% and Volkswagen jumped 0.97%, while BMW saw shares surge 1.24%.
In London, FTSE 100 added 0.20%, supported by strong gains in the financial sector.
Shares in Lloyds Banking rallied 1.96% and the Royal Bank of Scotland surged 1.31%, while Barclays and HSBC Holdings jumped 1.13% and 0.58% respectively.
Oil and gas companies BP and Anglo America were also on the upside, with shares rising 0.33% and 0.02%.
Meanwhile, copper producer Xstrata saw shares drop 0.86% and Glencore tumbled 1.45%, as the merger deal between both companies was reportedly on the brink of collapse after Qatar, the sovereign wealth fund that has amassed a stake of over 10% in Xstrata, said late Tuesday that it wanted a higher price.
Mining groups Rio Tinto and Bhp Billiton contributed to losses, with shares falling 0.45% and 0.34% respectively.
Elsewhere, shares in BSkyb surged 1.48%, as the fate of the pay TV giant came into the spotlight amid reports of News Corp’s split into two entities, an entertainment company and a publishing firm.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a moderately higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.02% rise, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.09% increase, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.14% gain.
Later Wednesday, Germany was to produce preliminary data on consumer price inflation. The U.S. was to publish official data on durable goods orders, as well as industry data on pending home sales.