Investing.com - European stocks were higher on Monday, as the results of stress tests on Europe’s largest banks released over the weekend showed that most of the region’s top lenders could survive another financial crisis.
During European morning trade, the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 rose 0.36%, France’s CAC 40 gained 0.36%, while Germany’s DAX climbed 0.54%.
European equities strengthened after the European Central Bank announced the results of yearlong tests to assess the finances on 150 banks on Sunday. Overall, 25 banks were found to have a capital shortfall, but most have already taken steps to resolve this, the ECB said.
In total, 13 banks still need to come up with a total of €9.5 billion in extra capital, which was at the lower end of market expectations.
Financial stocks were broadly higher, as French lenders BNP Paribas (PARIS:BNPP) and Societe Generale (PARIS:SOGN) gained 0.71% and 1.67%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank (XETRA:DBKGn) rallied 1.72%.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo (MILAN:ISP) and Unicredit (MILAN:CRDI) jumped 1.27% and 2.04% respectively, while Spanish banks Banco Santander (MADRID:SAN) and BBVA (MADRID:BBVA) climbed 0.44% and 0.90%.On the downside, TNT Express (AMS:TNTE) plunged 6.98% after the Dutch parcel company reported an operating loss for the third quarter, citing provisions due to restructuring and a competition case in France.
In London, FTSE 100 rose 0.33%, led by TUI Travel (LONDON:TT), up 2.23% as travel stocks began to recover from recent losses linked to concerns over the spread of the Ebola virus.
British-American cruise line company Carnival (LONDON:CCL) was also on the upside, with shares advancing 2.09%, while Intercontinental Hotels Group (LONDON:IHG) trailed closely behind, climbing 1.80%.
Meanwhile, mining stocks on the commodity-heavy index were mixed. Shares in Glencore Xstrata (LONDON:GLEN) added 0.10% and Bhp Billiton (LONDON:BLT) gained 0.74%, while rivals Rio Tinto (LONDON:RIO) and Fresnillo (LONDON:FRES) lost 0.12% and 0.98% respectively.
In the financial sector, stocks were broadly lower as Barclays (LONDON:BARC) and HSBC Holdings (LONDON:HSBA) slipped 0.27% and 0.29%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland (LONDON:RBS) declined 0.48% and Lloyds Banking (LONDON:LLOY) tumbled 2%.
Earlier Monday, Jefferies Group LLC lowered its rating on Lloyds Banking to the equivalent of a "sell", saying the lender probably won’t pay a dividend until 2016 as it will require a higher capital ratio than initially thought.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a moderately higher open. The Dow 30 futures pointed to a 0.17% increase, S&P 500 futures signaled an 0.07% uptick, while the NASDAQ 100 futures indicated a 0.12% gain.
Later in the day, the Ifo Institute was to release its report on German business climate. The euro zone was to release data on M3 money supply and private loans.