(RTTNews) – This turned out to be a rather impressive first consultation of the timing of the year for European stocks on Thursday, as positive economic knowledge and growing optimism about a recovery boosted confidence.
Concerns about the rise in the Delta variant of coronavirus infection and travel restrictions in several countries have limited the rise in markets, but several indices in the region hit new or multi-month highs in the session.
In addition to reacting to the latest batch of knowledge from the region, investors also followed U. S. economic reports. U. S. And they were expecting the monthly employment knowledge, expected for Friday.
The pan-European Stoxx was up 0. 62%. Britain’s FTSE cien rose 1. 25%, Germany’s DAX 0. 47% and France’s CAC 40 rose 0. 71%, while Switzerland’s SMI closed 0. 29%.
Greece, the Netherlands, Russia and Sweden ended higher, while the Czech Republic finished weakly.
In the UK market, JD Sports Fashion rose almost 5. 5%. Shares of Associated British Foods rose around 4. 8% after the company said sales at its Primark fashion outlets rose much more than expected in the third quarter.
Royal Dutch Shell ended up nearly 3% after the company announced plans to leave Aera, its California-based oil and fuel production joint venture with Exxon Mobil Corp.
IAG, Compass Group, Hikma Pharmaceuticals, Melrose Industries, Fresnillo, BP, Flutter Entertainment, Aveva Group, Legal
In the French market, Technip grew by almost 4. 5%. Societe Generale gained about 3% after a rating hike from Deutsche Bank. Sodexo rose 2. 3% after posting a sharp 19% increase in earnings in the third quarter.
Renault, Publicis Groupe, Unibail Rodamco, Safran, Veolia, Saint Gobain, Danone, Engie and Vinci also ended in progress, while Essilor lost 1. 7%.
On the economic front, the unemployment rate in the euro zone fell to 7. 9% in May from 8. 1% last month according to Eurostat data. The rate is expected to fall to 8%.
The eurozone’s production sector grew at a new record speed of surveys for the fourth consecutive month in June, as demand rose with the further easing of lockdown measures, according to the latest IHS Markit release.
The French production sector ended the current quarter with a strong expansion in production, new orders and employment. Although the production PMI fell to 59. 0 in June from 59. 4 in May, the index signaled a really extensive expansion.
Germany’s production sector performed better in June, with production rates and the expansion of new orders accelerating for the first time in 3 months. The IHS Markit/BME production PMI rose to 65. 1 in June from 66. 4 last month.
A report through Destatis showed retail sales in Germany rose 4. 2% month-on-month in May, down 6. 8% in April. in April.
The UK production sector recorded strong expansion in June, but the pace of expansion slowed from an all-time high, according to the final effects of the IHS Markit survey.
Other insights from the same source showed Switzerland’s retail sales were up 2. 8% year-on-year in May. On a monthly basis, seasonally adjusted retail sales were down 1. 8% for the month.