Investing.com - European stocks were sharply higher on Tuesday, as markets reopened after remaining closed for the Easter holiday on Monday and as markets eyed the release of euro zone service sector data due later in the day.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 advanced 0.89%, France’s CAC 40 climbed 0.98%, while Germany’s DAX 30 jumped 0.99%.
Earlier Tuesday, research group Markit said that Spain's services purchasing managers' index rose to 57.3 in March from 56.2 the previous month, beating expectations for an uptick to 56.5.
Financial stocks were broadly higher, as French lenders BNP Paribas (PARIS:BNPP) and Societe Generale (PARIS:SOGN) gained 0.40% and 1.01%, while Germany's Commerzbank (XETRA:CBKG) and Deutsche Bank (XETRA:DBKGn) jumped 1.41% and 1.59%.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy's Unicredit (MILAN:CRDI) and Intesa Sanpaolo (MILAN:ISP) climbed 0.66% and 0.72% respectively, while Spanish banks BBVA (MADRID:BBVA) and Banco Santander (MADRID:SAN) advanced 0.63% and 0.88%.
Elsewhere, shares in TNT Express (AMS:TNTE) skyrocketed 30.70% after the Dutch delivery services company agreed to a €4.4 billion takeover offer from FedEx Corp (NYSE:FDX).
On the downside, Air France-KLM plummeted 1.66% and Deutsche Lufthansa (XETRA:LHAG) lost 1.97% after JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE:JPM). downgraded the companies, citing flat margins and competition from Middle East airlines.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 rallied 1.29%, boosted by sharp gains in energy and mining stocks.
Oil and gas major BP (LONDON:BP) saw shares surge 1.99%, while rival company soared 3.65%, leading gains on the index.
Mining giants Rio Tinto (LONDON:RIO) and Bhp Billiton (LONDON:BLT) added to gains, with shares advancing 2.13% and 2.65% respectively, while Fresnillo (LONDON:FRES) climbed 2.75% and Glencore Xstrata (LONDON:GLEN) jumped 2.92%.
Financial stocks were also on the upside, as HSBC Holdings (LONDON:HSBA) rose 0.37% and the Royal Bank of Scotland (LONDON:RBS) gained 0.74%, while Barclays (LONDON:BARC) and Lloyds Banking (LONDON:LLOY) advanced 0.78% and 0.83% respectively.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.15% rise, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.09% gain, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.21% increase.
Later in the day, the euro zone was to release revised data on service sector activity.