Europe midday: Stocks rise after rise in German business confidence, UK retail sales
European stocks advanced as investors weighed an increase in German business confidence and better-than-forecast UK retail sales data.
Alcatel-Lucent
€3.50
08:00 02/11/16
Aveva Group
3,219.00p
07:30 18/01/23
CAC 40
8,022.41
16:59 19/04/24
FTSE 250
19,391.30
17:09 19/04/24
FTSE 350
4,341.08
17:09 19/04/24
FTSE All-Share
4,296.41
17:08 19/04/24
Roche
Fr.238.00
18:56 19/04/24
Software & Computer Services
2,337.16
17:09 19/04/24
Ifo’s index on German business sentiment rose to 105.5 in December from 104.7 a month earlier, as expected.
“December’s German Ifo survey provides some comfort that recent overseas events have not yet hit the economy, but remains consistent with only weak rates of expansion,” Capital Economics said.
Elsewhere in the euro-area, Prime Minister Antonis Samaras was unable to gain enough support for his nominee in a parliamentary vote for a new head of state. Greece is now closer to early elections, opening the door for the ascent of the anti-austerity party Syriza.
In the UK, a report showed retail sales rose 6.9% year-on-year in November after a 4.6% increase in October, more than the 4.5% predicted by analysts.
Stateside, initial jobless claims data will be released in the afternoon with economists expecting a 1,000 increase to 295,000 in the week to 13 December.
It comes a day after the Federal Reserve decided to keep interest rates unchanged, as anticipated by the market, but altered its tone on a potential increase by saying that it would be “patient” in deciding what to do next.
The central bank had previously said it would keep interest rates low for a "considerable time".
Meanwhile, Switzerland’s Novartis AG and Roche Holding AG advanced after the nation’s central bank introduced a negative deposit rate.
The Swiss National Bank said that it took the action “with the aim of taking the three-month Libor into negative territory, expanding its target range for to its usual width of one percentage point at -0.75% to 0.25%”.
Alcatel-Lucent SA rallied after a Manager Magazin report that Nokia Oyj resumed merger talks with the French company.
Swisscom AG declined after French billionaire Xavier Niel’s private holding company agreed to buy Orange Switzerland.
Aveva Group dropped after JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Morgan Stanley lowered their rating on the UK software maker.
The euro fell 0.19% to $1.2319.
Brent crude rose 2.5% to $62.81 per barrel, according to the ICE.