European stocks rise as sentiment improves; Dax up 0.71%

Investing.com - European stocks were higher on Thursday, as sentiment improved after the Federal Reserve said Wednesday that some aspects of the U.S. economy were improving, while concerns over the handling of Spain's financial crisis.

During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 advanced 0.64%, France’s CAC 40 rose 0.67%, while Germany’s DAX 30 climbed 0.71%.

In its rate statement on Wednesday, the Fed said the U.S. economy is improving moderately, but said job growth has been slow and the unemployment rate remains elevated.

The central bank also said it planned to keep its benchmark short-term rate close to zero through mid-2015.

Investors remained cautious however amid ongoing uncertainty over whether Spain is moving closer to formally requesting a bailout from its euro zone partners and activating the European Central Bank’s bond purchasing plan.

Financial stocks were broadly higher, as shares in French lenders BNP Paribas and Societe Generale climbed 0.94% and 0.95%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank advanced 1.79% and 0.53%.

Meanwhile, BASF surged 2.31% after saying earnings before interest, taxes and one-off items increased 5.4% to EUR2.07 billion, beating the average analyst forecast of EUR1.94 billion.

The company also reiterated its full-year target for earnings and sales to increase, while cutting its forecast for economic growth.

On the downside, Daimler plunged 3.28% after the German carmaker lowered its 2012 forecast and said it will no longer reach its 2013 operating margin targets because of tougher market conditions.

In London, FTSE 100 rose 0.48%, as U.K. lenders tracked their European counterparts higher, while preliminary data showed that economic growth in the U.K. expanded more-than-expected in the third quarter.

Shares in HSBC Holdings jumped 1.15% and Barclays advanced 1.26%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds Banking rallied 1.40% and 1.61%.

Mining stocks added to gains, as shares in Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton climbed 1.10% and 1.12%, while copper producer Xstrata and Kazakhmys advanced 1.33% and 0.73% respectively.

In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.43% gain, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.56% rise, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.65% increase.

Later in the day, the U.S. was to release official data on durable goods orders, as well as reports on pending home sales and initial jobless claims.

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