Europe open: Stocks rise as oil prices rebound
European stocks pushed up in early trade amid rising oil prices, as investors digested mixed data out of China.
At 0830 BST, the benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 index was up 0.5%, Germany’s DAX was 0.3% higher and France’s CAC 40 was up 0.6%.
At the same time, oil prices were firmer, rebounding from the previous session’s losses as the dollar weakened. West Texas Intermediate was up 0.7% at $45.03 a barrel and Brent crude was up 0.6% at $47.18.
“September, officially one of the worst months for stock markets, begins with a bang this year,” said Lee Wild, heady of equity strategy at Interactive Investor.
“Friday's US jobs report is the first piece of major data, and its significance cannot be understated. A higher number will likely trigger an increase in US interest rates in three weeks' time, the first since December, putting equity markets under pressure. Stocks have already struggled this week as traders take money off the table, just in case there’s a nasty surprise. And that’s probably wise given the unpredictable nature of August payrolls. Talk is that 200,000 or more makes higher rates this month a dead cert.”
An official survey in China showed factory activity in the world’s second-largest economy grew at its fastest rate in nearly two years last month.
The official purchasing managers’ index rose to 50.4 in August from 49.9 in July, marking its best level since October 2014. It was also ahead of economists’ expectations for an unchanged reading.
However, the Markit/Caixin PMI fell to 50 in August from 50.6 in July, missing expectations for a reading of 50.1.
Finally, the official services PMI declined to 53.5 from 53.9 the month before.
In corporate news, distiller Pernod Ricard racked up healthy gains as it posted a rise in full-year profit but said sales of its two largest brands dropped.
Roche was higher after the Swiss drug maker said its cancer immunotherapy Tecentriq extends survival in lung cancer.
Radiation therapy equipment maker Elekta rallied as its first-quarter core profit beat analysts’ expectations.
FTSE 250 recruiter Hays was in the red despite reporting a rise in profit for the year to the end of June as net fee income grew. The company said it was too early to gauge how Brexit will affect the business.
Safestore was on the front foot as it said that after a solid third quarter's trading, it was confident that adjusted earnings would be slightly ahead of current market expectations.
AstraZeneca edged higher as it announced the completion of its commercialisation agreement with Aspen Global Incorporated, for rights to its global anaesthetics portfolio outside the US.
FTSE 250 payment solutions provider Paysafe pushed up after acquiring affiliate technology business Income Access Group for a cash consideration of CAD40m.
Eurozone manfufacturing PMI is at 0900 BST. In the US, initial jobless claims are at 1330 BST, while construction spending and ISM manufacturing are at 1500 BST.