By Peter Nurse
Investing.com - European stock markets posted strong gains Monday amid hopes of a global economic recovery, but concerns remain over the increasing number of new coronavirus cases.
At 3:50 AM ET (0750 GMT), the DAX in Germany traded 2.1% higher, France's CAC 40 rose 2%, the U.K.'s FTSE index was up 2.2%.
Economic data of late has tended to point to a reasonably prompt economic recovery around the world.
Earlier Monday, German factory orders jumped 10.4% in May, rebounding after falling by a revised 26.2% the previous month.
Allianz (DE:ALVG) senior economist Katherina Utermoehl said via Twitter that the data point to a "much more gradual recovery" than in retail, "due in particular to weak foreign demand."
"BUT as deconfinement in key countries only kicked off in May, June should have more oomph," Utermoehl added.
This follows on from the U.S. recording the addition of 4.8 million jobs in June, much more than expected, while PMI data in China and throughout Europe have tended to suggest renewed confidence in a brisk pickup in activity.
Additionally, the U.S. Congress is set to resume talks on the next stimulus bill later this month. The likely need for additional stimulus grows as the number of Covid-19 cases shows no signs of slowing down. The World Health Organization reported the highest number of cases over a 24-hour period, with both Texas and Florida reporting new one-day records for new infections on Saturday.
Turning back to Europe, Boohoo (LON:BOOH) stock slumped 11% following a media report on the working conditions at one of its suppliers. The British online fashion retailer said on Monday it would terminate relationships with any supplier who was found not to be acting within its code of conduct.
Lloyds Banking (LON:LLOY) stock rose 2.7% after the British group’s CEO, Antonio Horta-Osorio, said he will step down at the end of next year. Rivals banks HSBC (LON:HSBA) rose 6% and Standard Chartered (OTC:SCBFF) 5%, benefitting from their links to Asia given the big equity rally in that part of the world.
Later in the session, the June construction PMI release from the U.K. will be published, as will eurozone retail sales for May.
Oil prices pushed higher Monday, although the continued growth of new coronavirus cases in the U.S. resulted in underperformance by the American benchmark, WTI futures.
Coronavirus cases in the U.S. increased by almost 56,000 on Sunday, according to Johns Hopkins University. raising concerns that this jump could hit oil demand in the United States.
At 3:50 AM ET, U.S. crude futures traded 0.8% higher at $40.98 a barrel. The international benchmark Brent contract rose 1.8% to $43.55.
Elsewhere, gold futures fell 0.3% to $1,785.35/oz, while EUR/USD traded at 1.1297, up 0.4% on the day.