Investing.com - European stocks were higher on Monday, after strong German data, although investors remained cautious ahead of the Federal Reserve's monthly policy meeting scheduled later in the week.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 climbed 0.42%, France’s CAC 40 added 0.25%, while Germany’s DAX 30 rose 0.34%.
Market research group Markit said that its preliminary German manufacturing purchasing managers’ index rose to a seasonally adjusted 54.2 in December from a final reading of 52.7 in November, hitting the highest level since June 2011.
Analysts had expected the index to inch up to 53.0 this month.
Meanwhile, investors were eyeing the outcome of the Fed’s upcoming policy meeting on Wednesday, with some expecting the bank to announce a small reduction in the pace of its USD85 billion-a-month asset purchase program.
Recent signs of improvement in the labor market and last week’s agreement on a two-year U.S. budget deal were seen as removing obstacles to the winding back of monetary stimulus.
But with the inflation outlook remaining subdued the Fed may prefer to hold off on tapering stimulus measures until it sees more indications that the recovery is self-sustaining.
Financial stocks were mostly higher, as BNP Paribas added 0.19% and Societe Generale eased 0.05% in France, while Germany's Deutsche Bank rose 0.28%.
Among peripheral lenders, Spanish banks BBVA and Banco Santander rallied % and 1.08% respectively, while Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo and Unicredit gained 0.63% and 1.25%.
Elsewhere, Carrefour climbed 0.53% after the French retailer joined a group of institutional investors to buy 127 European shopping malls in a EUR2 billion transaction, giving the company more control of the sites around its hypermarkets.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 edged up 0.15%, supported by gains in the financial sector.
HSBC Holdings inched up 0.05% and the Royal Bank of Scotland rose 0.32%, while Barclays gained 0.64%. Lloyds Banking underperformed on the other hand, plummeted 1.26%.
Meanwhile, mining stocks were on the downside, as shares in Glencore Xstrata slid 0.32% and Rio Tinto declined 0.42%, while Randgold Resources tumbled 0.98%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a moderately lower open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.10% fall, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.09% loss, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.10% slip.
Also Monday, data showed that the preliminary reading of China’s HSBC manufacturing index ticked down to a three-month low of 50.5 in December from a final reading of 50.8 in November. Economists had expected the index to rise to 51.0.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release reports on industrial production, manufacturing activity in the New York region and the balance of foreign and domestic investment in U.S. securities.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 climbed 0.42%, France’s CAC 40 added 0.25%, while Germany’s DAX 30 rose 0.34%.
Market research group Markit said that its preliminary German manufacturing purchasing managers’ index rose to a seasonally adjusted 54.2 in December from a final reading of 52.7 in November, hitting the highest level since June 2011.
Analysts had expected the index to inch up to 53.0 this month.
Meanwhile, investors were eyeing the outcome of the Fed’s upcoming policy meeting on Wednesday, with some expecting the bank to announce a small reduction in the pace of its USD85 billion-a-month asset purchase program.
Recent signs of improvement in the labor market and last week’s agreement on a two-year U.S. budget deal were seen as removing obstacles to the winding back of monetary stimulus.
But with the inflation outlook remaining subdued the Fed may prefer to hold off on tapering stimulus measures until it sees more indications that the recovery is self-sustaining.
Financial stocks were mostly higher, as BNP Paribas added 0.19% and Societe Generale eased 0.05% in France, while Germany's Deutsche Bank rose 0.28%.
Among peripheral lenders, Spanish banks BBVA and Banco Santander rallied % and 1.08% respectively, while Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo and Unicredit gained 0.63% and 1.25%.
Elsewhere, Carrefour climbed 0.53% after the French retailer joined a group of institutional investors to buy 127 European shopping malls in a EUR2 billion transaction, giving the company more control of the sites around its hypermarkets.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 edged up 0.15%, supported by gains in the financial sector.
HSBC Holdings inched up 0.05% and the Royal Bank of Scotland rose 0.32%, while Barclays gained 0.64%. Lloyds Banking underperformed on the other hand, plummeted 1.26%.
Meanwhile, mining stocks were on the downside, as shares in Glencore Xstrata slid 0.32% and Rio Tinto declined 0.42%, while Randgold Resources tumbled 0.98%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a moderately lower open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.10% fall, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.09% loss, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.10% slip.
Also Monday, data showed that the preliminary reading of China’s HSBC manufacturing index ticked down to a three-month low of 50.5 in December from a final reading of 50.8 in November. Economists had expected the index to rise to 51.0.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release reports on industrial production, manufacturing activity in the New York region and the balance of foreign and domestic investment in U.S. securities.