Europe midday: Oil stocks pace gains
European markets were holding near their best levels of the session come midday, bolstered by stronger than expected economic data and gains for oil stocks.
As of 11:45 BST the pan-European DJ Stoxx 600 was higher by 1.19% or 4.04 points to 346.45, alongside gains of 1.71% to 10,294.12 for Germany´s Dax and an advance of 1.75% to 17,931.36 for Italy´s FTSE Mibtel.
The DJ Stoxx 600´s Oil&gas sector index was pacing gains, rising by 2.0% to 279.39, while a gauge of bank shares was up by 1.54% to 149.00.
On Monday evening, Exxon Mobil reported a pipeline failure and spill at its Torrance refinery near Los Angeles. That came close on the heels of news of fresh attacks against the oil sector´s infrastructure in the Niger Delta.
As a result, front month Brent crude futures were holding 0.57% higher at $50.84 per barrel on the ICE.
Fed chair Janet Yellen´s speech on Monday evening was also very much on investors’ minds.
Although the US central bank chief sounded an optimistic note on the outlook for America´s economy, her remarks also appreared to preclude an interest rate hike at the Federal Open Market Committee´s next policy meeting on 15 June, and quite plausibly also for July.
"Yellen was much more dovish than in her recent speech, as she did not repeat that a hike 'in the coming months' could be appropriate, which supports our view (and market expectations) that a summer hike is off the table.
"Although Yellen said that she thinks the positive factors are outweighing the negative, she highlighted the downside risks to the economic outlook," analysts at Danske Bank said in a research note sent to clients.
In corporate news, German sportscar-maker Porsche announced first quarter group profits of €661m, mainly as a result of the profits which accruing to it from its stake in Volkswagen AG.
Also in the Automobile sector, Daimler AG announced it would reduce its headcount at three US plants and another in Mexico by 1,240.
Gross domestic product in the euro area expanded at a 0.6% quarter-on-quarter clip over the first three months of the year (consensus: 0.5%), revised data showed.
German industrial production rose by 0.8% month-on-month in April, according to the country´s Ministry of Economics.
That was better than the 0.7% gain which economists had pencilled in. Both factory and energy output increased by 1.1% month-on-month, with gains in the former led by a 2.2% jump in the production of capital goods.
The foreign trade deficit in France increased from -€4.2bn in March to -€5.2B in April (consensus -€4.5bn).
Industrial production in Spain expanded at a seasonally adjusted 2.7% year-on-year pace in April (consensus: 2.40%).