Investing.com - European stocks bounced back from one-month lows on Monday, as rising oil prices lent support to the energy sector and as investors focused on the extraordinary Eurogroup meeting where finance ministers will gather to discuss Greece’s bailout review.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 rose 0.76%, France’s CAC 40 gained 0.78%, while Germany’s DAX 30 traded up 1.24%.
European traders looked past Chinese imports that tumbled 10.9% and left the DJ Shanghai Composite index with heavy losses on Monday.
In European data, German factory orders beat forecasts in March, while in the U.K., the Halifax house price index dropped more than expected in April.
Market participants were awaiting a decision by the Eurogroup on Athens’ bailout program after Greek lawmakers passed painful reform to attain fiscal targets.
The group of euro zone finance ministers will have to approve the macroeconomic program in order to unlock further financial assistance to Greece.
Meanwhile, oil prices moved higher on Monday, as the wildfire in Northern Alberta, Canada disrupted the country’s oil production, knocking out over a million barrels in daily production capacity.
Energy stocks were mixed, as French oil and gas major Total SA (PA:TOTF) edged forward 0.08% and Italy’s ENI (MI:ENI) SpA rose 0.44%, while Norwegian rival Statoil ASA (OL:STL) fell 1.24%.
Financial stocks added to gains, as French lenders BNP Paribas (PA:BNPP) and Societe Generale (PA:SOGN) climbed 0.75% and 0.78%, while Germany’s Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn) gained 1.09%.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy’s Intesa Sanpaolo (MI:ISP) and Unicredit (MI:CRDI) dropped 0.36% and 0.72% respectively, while Spanish banks BBVA (MC:BBVA) and Banco Santander (MC:SAN) rallied 1.16% and 1.38%.
In earnings news, Brenntag AG (DE:BNRGn) slumped almost 7% after the chemical distributor reported quarterly profit that missed consensus.
In London, FTSE 100 rose 0.61%, led by G4S (CO:G4S), whose shares soared more than 5% after increasing quarterly revenue.
Mining stocks were broadly lower due to the disappointing Chinese data. Anglo American (LON:AAL) and Glencore (LON:GLEN) led the decliners in the commodity-heavy index with respective losses of 6.6% and 5.0%. Shares in Rio Tinto (LON:RIO) fell 4.42% while BHP Billiton (LON:BLT) traded down 4.55%.
Financial stocks generally added to gains, with the Royal Bank of Scotland (LON:RBS) inching up 0.02% while Lloyds Banking (LON:LLOY) rose 0.35% and HSBC Holdings (LON:HSBA) advanced 0.52%. Barclays (LON:BARC) was the evident exception with shares dropping 0.71%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a flat open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.01% gain, S&P 500 futures a 0.01% decrease, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.01% drop.