European stocks climbed this morning, resuming a rally that had stalled earlier this week.
A gauge of food and beverage shares posted the best performance among the region’s industry groups. Carlsberg rose 7.9 per cent after the world’s fourth-largest brewer reported profit that beat estimates and announced job cuts to reduce costs. AB InBev added one per cent after making a formal offer to buy SABMiller, which gained 1.4 per cent.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index added 0.5 per cent at 8:20am in London. The index fluctuated yesterday, closing 0.1 percent higher, as investors weighed further signs of a slowdown in China and the prospect of a US rate increase. Reports today gave a mixed picture of the world’s second-largest economy 0 industrial output matched last month’s weakest gain since 2008, while retail sales accelerated.
European stocks rebounded 12 per cent from a September low through Friday, before running out of steam earlier this week. With odds increasing for the Federal Reserve to raise rates in December and the European Central Bank saying they will consider more stimulus in the same month, investors are awaiting the two policy meetings for clarity on the trajectory of monetary easing.
News by Bloomberg, edited by ESM. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.
