European stocks mostly rose on Thursday, with the exception of U.K. equities, as multinationals suffered from the continued run-up in the pound.
The Stoxx Europe 600 SXXP, +0.47% increased 0.29% to 404.37.
The German DAX DAX, +0.24% and French CAC 40 PX1, +0.73% also rose. U.S. stock futures ES00, +0.35% gained ground as well.
However, the U.K. FTSE 100 UKX, +0.03% declined 0.09% to 7182.28. The rise in the pound GBPUSD, +0.2671%, on the expectation that the Conservatives will secure a majority in Parliament after the December 12 general election, is weighing on U.K.-based multinationals such as AstraZeneca AZN, +0.14% that earn most of their revenue outside the country. AstraZeneca’s U.K.-listed shares fell 0.5%.
Of stocks in the spotlight, shares in Italian jacket maker Moncler MONC, +10.76% surged after Bloomberg reported Kering, the French luxury brands owner, has held exploratory talks on buying it. Kering KER, +1.34% shares rose 1.7%. Neither company commented.
An analyst at ING said a buyout price could be 13 billion euros ($14.4 billion). Analysts at Morgan Stanley, who say Moncler could fetch 12.25 billion euros, said the Italian group would be a “plug-and-play” acquisition for Kering and a way for the French company to reduce its dependence on the Gucci brand.
M&G shares MNG, -3.38% dropped for a second day, losing 3%, after the fund manager on Wednesday suspended redemptions from its flagship property fund.
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