Europe open: Shares surge on Amazon deal with Just Eat Takeaway

European shares made a strong start at the open on Wednesday, driven by a deal that will see Amazon take a stake in Just Eat Takeaway’s struggling US unit Grubhub.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 was up almost 2%, with sentiment boosted by news that Norwegian oil and gas workers had called off their strike, easing worries of a supply shortage.

Germany's DAX gained 1.9% after slumping almost 3% in the previous session. Data showed German industrial orders grew surprisingly in May, reversing the trend after a third consecutive monthly drop.

Britain’s FTSE 100 outperformed the European benchmark with a 2.35% rise despite the resignation of Finance Minister Rishi Sunak and Health Secretary Sajid Javid from the government of embattled Prime Minister Boris Johnson over more claims he misled his MPs.

Oil prices came under pressure, driven by fears of reduced demand, with international benchmark Brent crude falling below $100 a barrel.

“It is increasingly hoped that lower oil prices, which would benefit both businesses as well as consumers, could lead to an adjustment of investment and spending patterns which would underpin a faltering economy,” said Interactive Investor head of markets Richard Hunter.

“Similarly, the thought of recession could result in lower interest rates if the monetary tightening is overdone. As such, high growth stocks would benefit from such easier conditions. In addition, there was some strength in consumer discretionary stocks in light of such a possible relief to the current pressure on consumer spending.”

In equity news, Just Eat Takeaway.com surged 16.5% after Amazon agreed to take a 2% stake in Grubhub and said it will offer its Prime members access to the service for one year.

Shares of Faurecia fell 4.3% after Barclays double-downgraded its rating on the French car parts maker' stock to "underweight".

Ryanair shares rose on the back of a UBS upgrade to ‘buy’.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti at Sharecast.com