European stocks rise with Draghi remarks on tap; Dax up 0.84%

Investing.com - European stocks were higher on Wednesday, as markets eyed comments by European Central Bank President Mario Draghi, expected later in the day, amid growing expectations for additional easing measures in the euro zone.

During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 advanced 0.54%, France’s CAC 40 gained 0.55%, while Germany’s DAX 30 climbed 0.84%.

European equities found support after Reuters reported on Monday that the ECB could cut its deposit rate deeper into negative territory at its December meeting.

But gains were limited after Friday's U.S. employment data paved the way for the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates at its December meeting.

Financial stocks were mixed, as BNP Paribas (PA:BNPP) rose 0.25% and Societe Generale (PA:SOGN) slid 0.37% in France, while Germany's Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn) and Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) declined 0.13% and 0.33%.

Among peripheral lenders, Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo (MI:ISP) and Unicredit (MI:CRDI) gained 0.13% and 0.76% respectively, while BBVA (MC:BBVA) dipped 0.05% and Banco Santander (MC:SAN) eased up 0.04% in Spain.

Elsewhere, Carlsberg (CO:CARLa) soared 9.20% after the Danish brewer said it plans to book $1.4 billion in impairment and restructuring costs and cut white-collar staff by 15%, in a move to bolster growth.

On the downside, Vivendi (PA:VIV) SA dove 7.81% after posting profit that missed analysts’ projections.

In London, FTSE 100 gained 0.39%, helped by SABMiller (L:SAB), whose shares rallied 1.22% after AB InBev confirmed the deal to take over the U.K. brewer.

It said it would pay £44 for eachSABMiller share held and would sell off its Coors division.

Meanwhile, mining stocks were mixed on the commodity-heavy index. Shares in Rio Tinto (L:RIO) rose 0.26% and Glencore (L:GLEN) jumped 1.55%, while Bhp Billiton (L:BLT) retreated 0.75% and Anglo American (L:AAL) tumbled 1.53%.

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In the financial sector, stocks were mostly lower as Lloyds Banking (L:LLOY) edged down 0.11% and Barclays (L:BARC) fell 0.22%, while HSBC Holdings (L:HSBA) slid 0.29%. The Royal Bank of Scotland (L:RBS) held steady, with shares inching up 0.06%.

In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.13% rise, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.16% gain, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.17% increase.