EUROPE MARKETS: European Stocks Set To Snap Losing Streak As Miners Jump
22 August 2017 - 1:13PM
Dow Jones News
By Carla Mozee, MarketWatch
ZEW's German economic sentiment at 10-month low; Provident
Financial shares crash
European stocks pushed higher Tuesday, with advances in the
basic resources sector poised to lead the market out of a
three-session run of declines.
The Stoxx Europe 600 index bulked up by 0.7% to 374.44. All
sectors rose, led by the basic materials and health care groups.
The pan-European benchmark fell 0.4% on Monday
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/fiat-maersk-shares-shine-in-lackluster-european-stock-market-2017-08-21),
in part on concerns about another flare-up in tensions between the
U.S. and North Korea.
But investors on Tuesday appeared to set aside those concerns
and concentrate on corporate financial updates. Among these were
updates from mining heavyweights BHP Billiton PLC and Antofagasta
PLC.
BHP shares (BLT.LN) (BHP.AU) (BHP.AU) moved up 3% after the
miner said it's planning to sell its onshore U.S. oil and gas
operations
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/bhp-billiton-looks-to-sell-us-shale-operations-2017-08-21).
The decision followed a push by activist investor Elliott
Management in favor of the move.
BHP also said its final dividend will rise threefold. The miner
swung to a yearly net profit of $5.86 billion, but that was weaker
than anticipated.
Antofagasta shares (ANTO.LN) jumped 2.9%. The copper miner more
than tripled its interim dividend payment
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/antofagasta-profit-surges-to-triple-dividend-2017-08-22)
after reporting a sharp rise in half-year earnings.
The share-price moves helped guide the Stoxx Europe 600 Basic
Resources Index higher by 1.5%, on course for its best session in
nearly a week.
Gloom in Germany: European stocks held to higher ground even
after the release of a downbeat ZEW survey on German economic
sentiment
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/german-economic-sentiment-drops-more-than-seen-2017-08-22).
The economic expectations index came in at 10.0, down from 17.5 in
July and below the FactSet estimate of 15.0. That's the lowest
reading since October when the index was 6.2.
"The significant decrease of the ZEW economic sentiment
indicator reflects the high degree of nervousness over the future
path of growth in Germany. Both weaker than expected German exports
as well as the widening scandal in the German automobile sector in
particular have helped contribute to this situation," ZEW President
Achim Wambach said in a statement.
"Overall, the economic outlook still remains relatively stable
at a fairly high level," he said.
The euro drifted down to $1.1747, from around $1.1771 ahead of
the survey's release. The shared currency bought $1.1817 late
Monday in New York.
The ZEW survey arrived ahead of data due this week on German
manufacturing and services activity in August and the final look at
second-quarter gross domestic product. On Friday, the widely
watched business climate survey from the Ifo Institute is due. Last
month, Ifo said sentiment among German business sentiment was
'euphoric' and businesses were optimistic about their short-term
prospects.
Read:Why export powerhouse Germany is 'euphoric' even with a
soaring euro
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/export-reliant-germany-euphoric-even-as-the-euro-soars-yes-heres-why-2017-08-09)
Also: German growth robust despite mild slowdown in Q2
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/german-growth-robust-despite-mild-slowdown-in-q2-2017-08-15)
Stock movers: Provident Financial (PFG.LN) tumbled 73% after the
U.K.-based lender said it expects to lose between 80 million pounds
and GBP120 million in the third quarter. The profit warning
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/provident-warns-on-profit-again-ceo-to-leave-2017-08-22),
the second in three months, comes after Provident shifted to using
full-time "customer experience managers" rather than self-employed
agents in its home credit business.
National indexes: Germany's DAX 30 index moved up 0.7% to
12,143.96, and France's CAC 40 index rose 0.4% to 5,109.28,
The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index gained 0.6% to 7,364.87
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ftse-100-led-higher-by-miners-as-provident-plunges-almost-60-2017-08-22).
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 22, 2017 06:58 ET (10:58 GMT)
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