European stocks rise as Merkel, Sarkozy meet; DAX up 0.50%
Investing.com
Published Dec 05, 2011 03:59AM ET
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 jumped 1.02%, France’s CAC 40 climbed 0.96%, while Germany’s DAX 30 advanced 0.50%.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel were to meet in Paris in order to fine-tune proposals they plan to present to European Union leaders on Thursday on the eve of an EU summit.
On Sunday, Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti unveiled a EUR30 billion package, raising taxes and increasing the pension age in a drive to shore up Italy's strained finances.
The financial sector was sharply higher, led by French lender Societe General with shares surging 4.42% and BNP Paribas jumping 3.44%, while Germany’s Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank soared 1.70% and 4.98% respectively.
Peripheral lenders added to gains as shares in Italy’s Unicredit climbed 4.67% and Intesa Sanpaolo jumped 3.24%, while Spanish groups Banco Santander and BBVA advanced 1.31% and 1.83%.
On the downside, German software company SAP AG tumbled 1.49% after agreeing to buy SuccessFactors Inc. for USD3.4 billion in cash.
In London, FTSE 100 rose 0.12%, as U.K. lenders tracked their European counterparts sharply higher.
Lloyds Banking saw shares surge 4.96% and the Royal Bank of Scotland jumped 3.89%, while Barclays and HSBC Holdings climbed 3.41% and 0.28%.
Elsewhere, Aberdeen Asset management Plc climbed 4.72% after the Scottish fund manager reported profit and sales that topped estimates.
Meanwhile, mining stocks were mixed as shares in Rio Tinto advanced 0.40% while Bhp Billiton inched down 0.06%. Copper producers Xstrata and Kazakhmys declined 0.02% and 0.22%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a rise of 0.78%, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.85% increase, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.78% gain.
Later in the day, the euro zone was to produce a report on investor confidence, as well as official data on retail sales. In the U.S., the Institute of Supply Management was to release a report on service sector activity.
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