Europe close: Stocks move higher as trade worries ease a little
European shares were up on Thursday after the US and China confirmed their trade representatives will meet again and the threat of a no-deal Brexit appeared to recede, although there appeared to be some discrepancies as to the exact date for top officials from both sides to meet.
US and Chinese negotiators agreed to meet in the US in early October, giving some investors reason for optimism that a resolution of the trade war between the two superpowers might not be impossible, although CMC Markets market analyst Michael Hewson was not as hopeful.
"For now it appears that markets are looking to the horizon with optimism, then we’ll probably follow a familiar playbook of another President Trump twitter tantrum, which will send markets lower, before we get more talk of possible talks, which then sees markets rise again, before a rinse and repeat.
"At the risk of being cynical we’ve been here so many times before and been disappointed so there is little expectation that this rebound will be any different."
By the close, the Stoxx 600 was up 0.72% at 385.92 as France's CAC 40 index climbed by 1.11% to 5,593.37 and Germany's Dax was 0.85% higher at 12,126.78.
In parallel, the yield on the benchmark 10-year German government bond moved eight basis points higher to -0.59%.
Meanwhile, London's FTSE 100 was down by 0.55% to 7,271.17, as the sterling rose by 0.58% against the greenback to 1.23276 as Boris Johnson's grasp on Brexit proceedings appeared increasingly tenuous.
Having lost a vote for a snap election on Wednesday, on Thursday the new Prime Minister saw his brother, Jo Johnson, quit as a minister and Tory MP as the tide of Westminster continued to turn against him.
With Brexit proceedings out of Boris Johnson's control it was increasingly likely that Parliament would seek an extension to the current 31 October Brexit deadline, leaving more time for a deal to be agreed.
Neil Wilson, analyst at Markets.com, said: "The political situation remains very fluid and uncertain, making this trade very hard to call. The only certainty is that the pound is exposed to a significant amount of headline risk and volatility as markets react to the news flow. That said, the trend right now is positive."
On the macro front, newly released data showed that German industrial orders fell by more than expected in July in response to weak international demand.
With orders from non-Eurozone countries flagging in particular, the data from the German economy ministry showed total orders for goods manufactured in the country fell short of expectations, falling by 2.7% when compared to the month before.
In corporate news, Equinor ASA led the Stoxx 600 higher with a 8% jump after the Norwegian energy firm launched a share buy-back program of up to $5bn.
Dassault Aviation S.A. reversed an early surge the day after the French warplane and jet manufacturer confirmed that a slew of last-minute orders helped it to achieve a jump in interim profit.
Luxury goods outfits such as Swatch Group, LVMH and Hugo Boss remained in the green for a second session as they continued to benefit from increased hopes for stability in Hong Kong, where many Chinese consumers often go in search of designer brands.
Melrose Industries was also on the up after it lauded a "significantly" better performance from its aerospace division as it reported better-than-expected first half profit growth.
Finally, CYBG dived by more than 20% after confirming it will take a big hit from last-minute claims related to the mis-selling of payment protection insurance (PPI).