Investing.com - European stock markets rose in cautious trade on Wednesday, boosted by gains in financial stocks despite sustained concerns over Spain’s financial troubles, while investors eyed government debt auctions in Italy and Germany later in the day.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 climbed 0.89%, France’s CAC 40 advanced 0.67%, while Germany’s DAX 30 rose 0.83%
.
Fears that a bailout for Spain’s banking sector could add to the country’s fiscal problems pushed the yield on Spanish 10-year bonds to a euro-era high of 6.82% on Tuesday, just below the critical 7% threshold which prompted bailouts in Greece, Ireland and Portugal.
Meanwhile investors were focused on the outcome of Sunday’s general election in Greece, where pro and anti-bailout parties are neck-and neck in the polls, fuelling fears that the country could be forced to exit the euro area.
Financial stocks were broadly higher, as shares in Italian lender Intesa Sanpaolo climbed 1.51% and Unicredit advanced 1.01%, while market attention slowly shifted to Italy’s financial woes. The yield on Italian 10-year bonds rose to 6.27% on Tuesday, moving closer to the critical 7% threshold which precipitated bailouts in Greece, Ireland and Portugal.
France’s biggest lenders, BNP Paribas and Societe Generale, also rallied 0.85% and 1.43%, while Germany’s Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank rose 1.10% and 0.67% respectively.
Elsewhere, fashion distributor Inditex was one of the session’s top gainers, with shares surging 8.29%, after reporting a higher-than-expected 30% gain in first-quarter profit, boosted by store openings in Asia.
Air France also saw shares jump 1.27% after French newspaper Les Echos reported late Tuesday that the company is in discussions with Etihad Airways about a commercial alliance.
In London, FTSE 100 added 0.63%, as U.K. lenders tracked their European counterparts higher.
Shares in Barclays surged 1.78% and the Royal Bank of Scotland jumped 1.49%, while Lloyds Banking and HSBC Holdings advanced 0.94% and 0.32%.
Mining giants Rio Tinto and Bhp Billiton contributed to gains, rising 0.71% and 0.36%, while copper producers Xstrata and Kazakhmys added 0.18% and 0.57% respectively, on the back of higher copper prices.
Also on the upside, oil and gas giant Anglo American rallied 1.10%, while BP shares edged up 0.10%.
Meanwhile, U.K. retailer J. Sainsbury Plc. tumbled 2.47% after the company said revenue at stores open at least a year rose 1.4% in the 12 weeks ended June 9, excluding gasoline sales.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a steady open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to edged up 0.06%, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.09% gain, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.07% increase.
Later in the day, Italy was set to auction as much as EUR4.5 billion of government bonds. The euro zone was to release official data on industrial production, while Germany was to hold an auction of 10-year government bonds.
In addition, the U.S. was to release official data on retail sales and producer price inflation.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 climbed 0.89%, France’s CAC 40 advanced 0.67%, while Germany’s DAX 30 rose 0.83%
.
Fears that a bailout for Spain’s banking sector could add to the country’s fiscal problems pushed the yield on Spanish 10-year bonds to a euro-era high of 6.82% on Tuesday, just below the critical 7% threshold which prompted bailouts in Greece, Ireland and Portugal.
Meanwhile investors were focused on the outcome of Sunday’s general election in Greece, where pro and anti-bailout parties are neck-and neck in the polls, fuelling fears that the country could be forced to exit the euro area.
Financial stocks were broadly higher, as shares in Italian lender Intesa Sanpaolo climbed 1.51% and Unicredit advanced 1.01%, while market attention slowly shifted to Italy’s financial woes. The yield on Italian 10-year bonds rose to 6.27% on Tuesday, moving closer to the critical 7% threshold which precipitated bailouts in Greece, Ireland and Portugal.
France’s biggest lenders, BNP Paribas and Societe Generale, also rallied 0.85% and 1.43%, while Germany’s Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank rose 1.10% and 0.67% respectively.
Elsewhere, fashion distributor Inditex was one of the session’s top gainers, with shares surging 8.29%, after reporting a higher-than-expected 30% gain in first-quarter profit, boosted by store openings in Asia.
Air France also saw shares jump 1.27% after French newspaper Les Echos reported late Tuesday that the company is in discussions with Etihad Airways about a commercial alliance.
In London, FTSE 100 added 0.63%, as U.K. lenders tracked their European counterparts higher.
Shares in Barclays surged 1.78% and the Royal Bank of Scotland jumped 1.49%, while Lloyds Banking and HSBC Holdings advanced 0.94% and 0.32%.
Mining giants Rio Tinto and Bhp Billiton contributed to gains, rising 0.71% and 0.36%, while copper producers Xstrata and Kazakhmys added 0.18% and 0.57% respectively, on the back of higher copper prices.
Also on the upside, oil and gas giant Anglo American rallied 1.10%, while BP shares edged up 0.10%.
Meanwhile, U.K. retailer J. Sainsbury Plc. tumbled 2.47% after the company said revenue at stores open at least a year rose 1.4% in the 12 weeks ended June 9, excluding gasoline sales.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a steady open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to edged up 0.06%, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.09% gain, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.07% increase.
Later in the day, Italy was set to auction as much as EUR4.5 billion of government bonds. The euro zone was to release official data on industrial production, while Germany was to hold an auction of 10-year government bonds.
In addition, the U.S. was to release official data on retail sales and producer price inflation.