European stocks rose, rebounding from their biggest loss in more than five weeks, as investors speculated that the military standoff in Ukraine will not lead to war. U.S. index futures and Asian shares also climbed.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose 1.1 percent to 334.06 at 10:46 a.m. in London. The benchmark dropped 2.3 percent yesterday after Russia’s parliament granted President Vladimir Putin the authority to use force in Ukraine.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arrives in Kiev today. Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations said yesterday that threats posed by extremists legitimized his country’s intervention in Crimea, where Russian speakers make up the majority. The U.S. ambassador to the UN condemned the mobilization as a “response to an imaginary threat.”
Putin ended a series of military exercises in western Russia today and ordered the troops back to base, Interfax reported, citing presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
Glencore climbed 2.6 percent to 334.6 pence after forecasting that last year’s $29 billion takeover of Xstrata will generate savings in excess of $2.4 billion in 2014. That exceeded an estimate in September of $2 billion. Glencore also said adjusted net income rose to $3.67 billion in 2013 from $3.06 billion in 2012.
Beiersdorf advanced 1.5 percent to 73.19 euros after posting net income of 543 million euros in 2013, more than the average analyst estimate of 532.6 million euros. The company also said profitability will increase in 2014. Ebit amounted to 13.2 percent of sales last year.
Ashtead Group jumped 8.2 percent to 915 pence. The construction-equipment rental company also said Ebitda surged to 162.2 million pounds ($271 million) from 121 million pounds during the three months ending in January.
GAM Holding AG added 1.6 percent to 15.55 Swiss francs as the Zurich-based money manager proposed a payout of 65 centimes per share, exceeding the 60-centime projection. It also said that earnings per share climbed to 1.26 francs ($1.43) in 2013 from 94 centimes in 2012.
FTSE 100 6,811.53 +103.18 +1.54%
CAC 40 4,390.01 +99.14 +2.31%
DAX 9,548.39 +189.50 +2.02%