European stocks gained the most in a month, with the Stoxx Europe 600 Index posting its longest winning streak since January, as banks advanced and a report showed Chinese imports beat forecasts in March.

The Stoxx 600 increased 1.8 percent to 293.19 at the close of trading, its biggest advance since March 5.

China’s imports rose by a better-than-forecast 14.1 percent in March, while export growth slowed to 10 percent from a year earlier, the customs administration said today in Beijing.

In the U.S., several members of the Federal Open Market Committee said the central bank should begin tapering its bond buying program later this year and stop it by year end. The members “thought that if the outlook for labor market conditions improved as anticipated, it would probably be appropriate to slow purchases later in the year and to stop them by year-end,” according to the record of the Federal Open Market Committee’s March 19-20 meeting released today in Washington ahead of the regularly scheduled 2 p.m. time.

National benchmark indexes climbed in all of the 18 western European (SXXP) markets except Iceland.

FTSE 100 6,390.82 +77.61 +1.23% CAC 40 3,743.79 +73.07 +1.99% DAX 7,811.07 +173.56 +2.27%

National Bank of Greece SA and Eurobank Ergasias SA surged 27 percent to 59.9 euro cents, and 26 percent to 29.4 cents, respectively. The planned merger of the two lenders has been postponed and not canceled, Bank of Greece Governor George Provopoulos told lawmakers in Athens today.

SMA Solar rose 8.8 percent to 19.88 euros. Wacker Chemie, which makes the main raw material in solar panels, gained 5.8 percent to 59.16 euros. Meyer Burger Technology AG climbed 7.9 percent to 7.94 Swiss francs.

First Solar Inc., the world’s largest thin-film solar manufacturer by output, surged the most on record yesterday after forecasting sales of $3.8 billion to $4 billion this year. Earnings will be $4 to $4.50 a share, exceeding the $3.57 average of 23 analysts’ estimates.

Gerresheimer, which develops and produces specialty glass and plastics products, gained 2.5 percent to 44.74 euros. First- quarter revenue jumped 10 percent to 296.7 million euros ($388 million), compared with the average analyst estimate of 286.7 million euros.

EasyJet Plc (EZJ) increased 6.7 percent to 1,090 pence after Citigroup Inc. raised Europe’s second-largest discount airline to buy from neutral, saying it expects the company’s 2013 earnings per share to grow about 30 percent, then 6 percent to 7 percent annually thereafter. Citigroup also said its sees dividend growth and possibly more special dividends.

U.S. stock futures rose even after minutes from the Federal Reserve’s last meeting showed some policy makers saw quantitative easing efforts tapering around mid-year even as participants “remain concerned” about market stability.

Global Stocks:

Nikkei  13,288.13 +95.78 +0.73%

Hang Seng 22,034.56 +164.22 +0.75%

Shanghai Composite 2,226.13 +0.35 +0.02%

FTSE  6,357.72 +44.51 +0.71%

CAC  3,710.28 +39.56 +1.08%

DAX 7,715.55 +78.04 +1.02%

Crude oil $93.79 -0.44%

Gold $1578.70 -0.50%

Other:

European stocks gained for a third day, the longest winning streak since January, as Chinese imports beat forecasts and investors awaited the minutes of last month’s Federal Reserve meeting.

China’s imports rose by a better-than-forecast 14.1 percent in March, while export growth slowed to 10 percent from a year earlier, the customs administration said today in Beijing.

In the U.S., the Federal Open Market Committee releases minutes of its March 19-20 meeting, after which Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said further gains in the U.S. labor market were needed for the Fed to consider reducing its monetary easing. Policy makers reiterated the Fed’s key interest rate will stay near zero as long as unemployment stays above 6.5 percent and the inflation outlook is less than 2.5 percent.

Wacker Chemie and SMA Solar gained 6.1 percent to 59.30 euros and 6.6 percent to 19.48 euros, respectively. Meyer Burger Technology AG climbed 6.7 percent to 7.85 Swiss francs.

First Solar Inc., the world’s largest thin-film solar manufacturer by output, surged the most on record yesterday, after forecasting sales of $3.8 billion to $4 billion this year. Earnings will be $4 to $4.50 a share, exceeding the $3.57 average of 23 analysts’ estimates.

Stada Arzneimittel AG, Germany’s biggest publicly traded generic-drug maker, retreated 2 percent to 29.67 euros after Bank of America Corp. cut the stock to underperform from neutral, meaning investors should sell the shares.

FTSE 100 6,358.76 +45.55 +0.72%

CAC 40 3,718.35 +47.63 +1.30%

DAX 7,731.8 +94.29 +1.23%

Asian stocks rose, with the benchmark regional equities gauge heading for its longest winning streak in seven weeks, as investors speculated stimulus measures will boost economic growth and increase profits.

Nikkei 225 13,288.13 +95.78 +0.73%

Hang Seng 21,896.4 +26.06 +0.12%

S&P/ASX 200 4,968 -8.84 -0.18%

Shanghai Composite 2,223.3 -2.47 -0.11%

BHP Billiton Ltd., the world’s largest miner, climbed 1.7 percent to advance for a fourth day in Sydney, its longest winning streak in more than two months.

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc., Japan’s biggest bank, rose to the highest since June 2009 as speculation grew that Bank of Japan stimulus measures will boost earnings at financial-services firms.

Billabong International Ltd. slumped 27 percent after the Australian surfwear maker said it will hold talks on a A$287 million ($300 million) takeover deal.

Change % Change Last

Nikkei 225 13,192.35 -0.24 0.00%

Hang Seng 21,891.65 +173.60 +0.80%

S&P/ASX 200 4,976.84 +71.35 +1.45%

Shanghai Composite 2,225.77 +14.18 +0.64%

FTSE 100 6,313.21 +36.27 +0.58%

CAC 40 3,670.72 +3.94 +0.11%

DAX 7,637.51 -25.13 -0.33%

Dow +59.67 14,673.15 +0.41%

Nasdaq +15.61 3,237.86 +0.48%

S&P +5.52 1,568.59 +0.35%