European stocks rose for a second day after a report showed Chinese exports climbed more than expected and a gauge of telecommunications operators gained.

A report showed China’s imports increased 5.3 percent, falling short of the median economist estimate of 7 percent. The release from the General Administration of Customs yesterday also showed that exports from the world’s second-biggest economy rose 12.7 percent last month from a year earlier, exceeding projections from all but one of 42 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. The country’s trade surplus widened to $33.8 billion in November, the biggest gap since January 2009.

National benchmark indexes advanced in every western-European market except Switzerland and Luxembourg. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 and France’s CAC 40 gained 0.1 percent, while Germany’s DAX climbed 0.3 percent.

Inmarsat jumped 5.8 percent to 730.5 pence after announcing the first successful launch of a Global Xpress satellite. A gauge of telecommunications-related companies gained 0.6 percent as mobile-phone operators from Vodafone Group Plc to Telefonica Deutschland Holding AG added more than 1 percent.

Monte Paschi gained 4.9 percent to 17 euro cents. The foundation that owns almost 38 percent of Italy’s third-largest lender said it would consider a share sale taking place on or after May 12, according to a statement.

Sky Deutschland AG jumped 5.2 percent to 8.12 euros after the German pay-television provider controlled by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. acquired the rights to broadcast Champions League soccer matches in Europe’s largest economy through 2018.

British Sky Broadcasting Group Plc, which is also owned by Murdoch, lost the contest to televise Europe’s most important club soccer competition in the U.K. last month. BSkyB’s shares slumped 11 percent on Nov. 11, the first trading day after BT Group Plc announced it had the exclusive live rights to show all Champions League and Europa League games.

U.S. stock-index futures rose, as investors weighed economic reports from Asia and awaited the outcome of budget negotiations in Washington.

Globalmarkets:

Nikkei 15,650.21 +350.35 +2.29%

Hang Seng 23,811.17 +68.07 +0.29%

Shanghai Composite 2,238.2 +1.09 +0.05%

FTSE 6,550.17 -1.82 -0.03%

CAC 4,129.02 -0.35 -0.01%

DAX 9,208.25 +35.84 +0.39%

Crude oil $97.81 (+0.16%).

Gold $1231.60 (+0.21%).

European stocks were little changed as a gauge of mining companies declined, offsetting a report that showed Chinese exports climbed more than expected. U.S. index futures were little changed, while Asian shares gained.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index decreased 0.2 percent to 316.01 at 10:35 a.m. in London after earlier gaining as much as 0.3 percent. The equity benchmark has rallied 13 percent in 2013 as central banks around the world pledged to leave interest rates near record lows for a prolonged period of time.

China’s exports rose 12.7 percent last month from a year earlier. The release from the General Administration of Customs yesterday also showed that imports increased 5.3 percent, falling short of the median estimate of 7 percent. The country’s trade surplus widened to $33.8 billion in November, the biggest gap since January 2009.

In the U.S., lawmakers have until Friday to agree on a deal to limit automatic spending cuts to the federal budget. Aides to the chief negotiators -- Paul Ryan for the Republicans and Patty Murray for the Democrats -- said that they will probably find a compromise to reduce the cuts by $100 billion to $200 billion for one or two years.

Monte Paschi (BMPS) gained 4.4 percent to 17 euro cents. The foundation that owns almost 38 percent of Italy’s third-largest lender said it would consider a share sale taking place on or after May 12, according to a statement.

Sky Deutschland AG jumped 4.1 percent to 8.04 euros after the German pay-television provider controlled by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. acquired the rights to broadcast Champions League soccer matches in Europe’s largest economy through 2018.

British Sky Broadcasting Group Plc, which is also owned by Murdoch, lost the contest to televise Europe’s most important club soccer competition in the U.K. last month. BSkyB’s shares slumped 11 percent on Nov. 11, the first trading day after BT Group Plc announced it had the exclusive live rights to show all Champions League and Europa League games.

FTSE 100 6,539.63 -12.36 -0.19%

CAC 40 4,115.52 -13.85 -0.34%

DAX 9,178.39 +5.98 +0.07%

Asian stocks rose for the first time in four days after better-than-forecast growth in U.S. jobs and Chinese exports boosted investor confidence that cuts to Federal Reserve stimulus won’t derail the global economic recovery.

Nikkei 225 15,650.21 +350.35 +2.29%

Hang Seng 23,805.49 +62.39 +0.26%

S&P/ASX 200 5,144.42 -41.60 -0.80%

Shanghai Composite 2,238.2 +1.09 +0.05%

Techtronic Industries Co., a maker of power tools that gets about 73 percent of sales from North America, gained 1.2 percent in Hong Kong.

State Bank of India, the nation’s biggest lender, climbed 1.8 percent as the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex Index headed for a record close.

QBE Insurance Group Ltd. tumbled 22 percent after Australia’s largest insurer by market value forecast an unexpected loss of about $250 million due to writedowns at its North American operations.