Europe close: Stocks edge higher ahead of ECB

European stocks edged higher on Wednesday as investors sifted through more corporate releases and mulled over the latest data from China ahead of the European Central Bank's policy meeting the next day.

The benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 index advanced 0.34% to 343.64, while France’s CAC 40 gained 0.25% to 4,520.30 and Germany’s DAX rose 0.13% to 10,645.68.

Oil prices also gained after Saudi Arabia’s oil minister Khalid Al-Falih said many countries outside the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries were prepared to join an output deal to help steady the market and data from the US Departmemt of Energy revealed a 5.2m barrel drop in oil commercial oil stockpiles in the States.

West Texas Intermediate and Brent crude were up 2.84% to $51.76 a barrel and 2.33% to $52.91, respectively.

Figures released earlier showed China’s gross domestic product grew 6.7% in the year to September, bang in line with forecasts.

Other data showed retail sales were up 10.7% in September from a year earlier, also in line with expectations. However, industrial production figures disappointed, showing a 6.1% jump versus expectations of a 6.4% increase.

CMC Markets’ Jasper Lawler said: “The takeaway from the Chinese data is that government stimulus and credit expansion has stabilised growth. A potential problem looking forward is that China’s stable growth has come at the cost of a ballooning housing market. The government will likely need to change policy to deflate house prices in the coming months before it becomes a risk to financial stability.”

In corporate news, online retailer Zalando gained ground after it posted a third-quarter profit versus expectations of a loss and lifted its 2016 earnings forecast.

Metro AG edged higher despite reporting a small drop in fourth-quarter sales, as it confirmed its outlook for the year.
Carrefour was on the front foot after the French supermarket’s third-quarter revenue beat expectations

On the downside, Dutch coatings and paints maker Akzo Nobel declined after it said quarterly sales dropped 4%.

Builders’ merchant Travis Perkins slumped after it warned on full-year profit and announced the closure of 30 branches.

Consumer goods giant Reckitt Benckiser fell after its third-quarter sales missed expectations, while BHP Billiton slipped after it posted a drop in quarterly iron ore production.