Investing.com - European stocks were higher in light trade on Tuesday, as global financial centers returned from the long Easter weekend and as concerns over tensions in Ukraine continued to ease.
During European morning trade, the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 gained 0.78%, France’s CAC 40 advanced 0.77%, while Germany’s DAX jumped 1.17%.
Concerns over the crisis in eastern Ukraine eased last Thursday after Russia, Ukraine, the U.S. and the European Union said an agreement on steps to "de-escalate" the crisis had been reached.
Elsewhere, upbeat U.S. data on manufacturing and employment last week pointed to underlying strength in the economy.
The Labor Department reported the number of people filing for unemployment benefits edged up to 304,000, below analysts’ forecasts and not far from the six-and-a-half year low of 300,000 touched the previous week.
Financial stocks were mixed, as French lenders BNP Paribas (BNPP.PAR) and Societe Generale (SOGN.PAR) gained 0.73% and 0.94%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.XETRA) tumbled 1.39%.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo (ISP.MILAN) and Unicredit (CRDI.MILAN) fell 0.25% and 0.27% respectively, while BBVA (BBVA.MADRID) rose 0.31% and Banco Santander (SAN.MADRID) edged down 0.12% in Spain.
Elsewhere, Novartis (NOVN.SIX) surged 2.74% after the Swiss drugmaker agreed to buy Glaxosmithkline (GSK.LSE)'s cancer-drug business for $16 billion, to form a consumer-health venture with Glaxo and to sell its animal-health unit to Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) for $5.4 billion.
In earnings news, Philips Kon (PHG.AMS) reported first-quarter results that missed analysts' estimates, sending shares in the world’s largest lighting company down 5.86%.
In London, FTSE 100 advanced 0.99%, led by Astrazeneca (AZN.LSE), up 7.85%, amid reports Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) may come back to bid for the British drug company, after its £60 billion takeover approach was rejected.
Rival company Glaxosmithkline (GSK.LSE) added to gains, with shares surging 4.41%, on news of Novartis' plan to buy the company's cancer-drug business.
Financial stocks were also broadly higher, as Lloyds Banking (LLOY.LSE) added 0.20% and the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS.LSE) climbed 0.53%, while HSBC Holdings (HSBA.LSE) and Barclays (BARC.LSE) gained 0.40% and 0.53% respectively.
Minings stocks were on the downside. Shares in Glencore Xstrata (GLEN.LSE) slipped 0.27% and Rio Tinto (RIO.LSE) dropped 0.65%, while Randgold Resources (RRS.LSE) tumbled 1.26%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a steady open. The Dow 30 futures pointed to a 0.05% gain, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.03% uptick, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.14% rise.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release private sector data on existing home sales.