Investing.com - European stocks opened sharply higher on Wednesday, as a rebound in oil prices supported the energy sector and as investors eyed the release of a report on Germany’s business climate due later in the day.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 jumped 1.03%, France’s CAC 40 climbed 0.62%, while Germany’s DAX 30 advanced 0.92%.
Oil prices moved sharply higher after the American Petroleum Institute said on Tuesday that U.S. crude stocks dropped by 5.1 million barrels to 536.8 million last week.
Energy-related stocks were broadly higher, as French oil and gas major Total SA (PA:TOTF) climbed 0.85% and Italy’s ENI (MI:ENI) jumped 1.42%, while Norwegian rival Statoil (OL:STL) advanced 1.26%.
Financial stocks added to gains, as French lenders BNP Paribas (PA:BNPP) and Societe Generale (PA:SOGN) rallied 1.34% and 1.56%, while Germany’s Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) and Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn) surged 2.52% and 2.64%.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy’s Unicredit (MI:CRDI) and Intesa Sanpaolo (MI:ISP) advanced 0.52% and 1.22% respectively, while Spanish banks BBVA (MC:BBVA) and Banco Santander (MC:SAN) climbed 1.02% and 1.34%.
Elsewhere, Sanofi (PA:SASY) rallied 1.59% as the French drugmaker was expected to name candidates it will put forward to replace the entire board of U.S. cancer drug company Medivation Inc later Wednesday.
On the downside, Deutsche Post (DE:DPWGn) saw shares decline 0.78% after the German mail company announced the appointment of Tim Scharwath as management board member responsible for the group’s DHL Global Forwarding and Freight operations.
In London, FTSE 100 gained 0.74%, as U.K. lenders tracked their European counterparts higher.
Shares in Barclays (LON:BARC) edged up 0.11% and Lloyds Banking (LON:LLOY) advanced 1.17%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland (LON:RBS) jumped 1.75% and HSBC Holdings (LON:HSBA) surged 2.08%.
Meanwhile, mining stocks were mixed on the commodity-heavy index. Rio Tinto (LON:RIO) climbed 0.89% and Glencore (LON:GLEN) rallied 1.48%, while Fresnillo (LON:FRES) and Randgold Resources (LON:RRS) lost 0.58% and 1.02% respectively.
Marks and Spencer Group PLC (LON:MKS) was one of the worst performers on the index, with shares diving 6.41% after the retailer reported a rise in full-year profit and announced plans to overhaul its clothing and homeware business.
However, the company warned that these plans will most certainly have a negative impact on short-term profits.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.29% rise, S&P 500 futures a 0.27% gain, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.35% increase.