By Peter Nurse
Investing.com - European stock markets traded higher Tuesday, amid optimism over the ongoing Brexit trade negotiations despite increasing Covid-related lockdowns.
At 3:55 AM ET (0855 GMT), the DAX in Germany traded 0.6% higher, the CAC 40 in France rose 0.6% and the U.K.'s FTSE index climbed 0.3%.
European Union negotiator Michel Barnier has said that sealing a trade pact with Britain is still possible, while European Commission Ursula von der Leyen noted there was some “movement” over sticking points.
The Times of London reported that the two sides had made progress on the issue of the 'level playing field' as regards regulatory standards, leaving fishing rights as the biggest obstacle to a deal.
This all increases hope that some form of a deal can be reached with just days to go before the U.K. leaves the trading bloc.
This enthusiasm has outweighed worries about the economic damage being done to the region by the ongoing surge in coronavirus infections.
Late Monday, the U.K. government imposed tighter Covid-19 restrictions on London, citing increased infection rates that may be partly linked to a new variant of the coronavirus. Germany will enter a lockdown from Wednesday that will see the closure of non-essential stores, while the Netherlands has announced a new five-week lockdown and Italy is considering more stringent restrictions over the Christmas holidays.
The Federal Reserve starts its final policy-setting meeting of the year later Tuesday, to conclude on Wednesday. The Bank of England and the Bank of Japan also close out their 2020 meetings this week.
In corporate news, H & M (ST:HMb) stock dropped 0.6% after the Swedish retailer announced a 10% fall in net sales in local currencies in the fourth quarter. Inditex (MC:ITX) stock dropped 1%, hit by renewed lockdowns despite an improvement in sales in the third quarter compared with the previous one. Staying in retail, JD Sports (NASDAQ:JD) stock rose 4% after Britain's biggest sportswear acquired U.S.-based shoe retailer Shoe Palace for $325 million, expanding its American footprint.
IG Group (LON:IGG) stock rose 1.9%, after the online brokerage recorded another strong quarter, with net trading revenues in the first half of the year around two thirds higher than last year.
Oil prices stabilised Tuesday, despite tighter lockdowns in Europe exacerbating worries about a hit to demand even as Covid-19 vaccines began to be rolled out.
With this in mind, traders will look at inventory data from the American Petroleum Institute later Tuesday and the Energy Information Administration on Wednesday for further guidance.
U.S. crude futures traded 0.1% lower at $46.97 a barrel, while the international benchmark Brent contract was down 0.1% at $50.24.
Elsewhere, gold futures rose 0.9% to $1,848.45/oz, while EUR/USD traded 0.1% lower at 1.2142.