European equities hold four-month highs; Surge



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European equities closed firmer on Monday, but main index swung to best levels in four months as investors continue to closely monitor US-China trade talks in hopes of receiving optimistic news .

Fintech Wirecard AG jumped 15% after the German financial regulator banned investors from selling short its shares.

How are the markets behaving?

The Stoxx Europe 600

SXXP, + 0.23%

up 0.2% at 369.78 on Monday after the index closed at a four-month high on Friday, up 3% for the week.

FTSE MIB in Italy

I945, + 0.58%

rose by 0.6% to 20,333.26, while the IBEX 35 of

IBEX, + 0.35%

The index rose by 0.3% to 9,155.50 and the French CAC 40

PX1, + 0.30%

added 0.3% to 5,168.54.

The FTSE 100

UKX, -0.24%

down 0.3% to 7,219.47, after finishing the week up 2.3%, the largest percentage increase in three weeks since July 15, 2016. The German DAX 30

DAX, -0.01%

finished flat at 11.299.20.

L & # 39; euro

EURUSD -0.1414%

climbed to $ 1.1308 on Monday, compared to $ 1.12298 on Friday night in New York, while the pound sterling

GBPUSD, -0.2089%

went from $ 1.2892 to $ 1.2927.

What motivates the markets?

Trade talks between the United States and China will continue in Washington this week, fueling hopes that the two countries will soon reach an agreement. However, investors are still concerned about progress on tough issues such as Washington's dissatisfaction with China's technology and trade policies.

The automotive sector was down, with shares of Volkswagen AG

VOW3, -1.41%

down more than 1% and Daimler AG

DAI -0.57%

down just under 1% after the US Commerce Department reportedly sent a national safety report to President Donald Trump on Sunday containing recommendations on new tariffs for imported autos and auto parts.

European Commission spokeswoman Margaritis Schina was quoted as saying at a press conference on Monday that the EU would react quickly to all US tariffs on car imports from the region. A German magazine reported that a 25% tax was still on the table last week. The US auto industry is among those who warn that such duties could lead to job losses in the United States by increasing the price of automobiles, parts and repairs.

US markets were closed Monday for the President's holiday, which means the activity elsewhere can be light. "European markets have struggled consistently for gains since last summer, and this morning's tepid opening seems to show that investors remain reluctant to band together en masse," said Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets.

In Europe, investors were looking for a more in-depth debate on the European Central Bank's decision to revive the stimulus package after Benoît Coeuré, a member of the ECB's Governing Council, on Friday called the 39, euro area inflation at a shallow depth and announced a new longer-term refinancing operation, or TLTRO. which provides cheap loans, would be possible.

Which stocks are active?

Wirecard AG

WDI + 15.92%

equities climbed 15%, after the German financial regulator BaFin banned the creation of new short positions on the payment service provider or the increase of existing ones.

Faurecia S.A.

EO + 1.32%

jumped 1.3%, after the French automaker reported its net profit in 2018.

The Austrian chip maker ams AG

AMS + 3.52%

increased by nearly 4%, after a report that the company is trying to turn away from Apple

AAPL, -0.22%

iPhone given its recent slowdown in sales.

Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC

RB., + 4.64%

added more than 5% after consumer goods company announced annual revenue and profit growth after "widespread growth" in key brands

In the UK, Barclays PLC

BARC, -0.87%

lost 0.9% after one of its major shareholders, Tiger Global PLC, reportedly sold all of its $ 1 billion stake in the UK bank. It can hardly be described as a vote of confidence until its annual results are released later this week, said Hewson of the CMC.

The results of the other British banks are also expected to land this week, including the Lloyds banking group.

LLOY, -0.21%

which lost 0.1% Monday and HSBC Holdings PLC

HSBC, + 1.01%

HSBA, -0.33%

which dropped by 0.3%.

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