Europe midday: Markets rise amid Sino-US trade optimism
European stocks were higher at lunchtime on Monday, as investors digested positive signs for Sino-US relations after a chaotic weekend of Brexit action.
At 1159 BST, the Stoxx 600 was 0.4% higher at 393.39p, as Germany's Dax climbed by 0.7% to 12,723.68 and the French CAC 40 rose by 0.2% to 5,647.57. Meanwhile, London's FTSE 100 was up by 0.1% at 7,158.29.
In Sino-US news, Chinese Vice Premier Liu said the two superpowers had "made substantial progress" in many aspects of negotiations and "laid an important foundation for a phase one agreement".
Rabobank analysts said: "In the coming weeks the markets will continue to assess the probability of President Trump and President Xi signing a deal in mid-November.
"Even if there is an agreement, the prevailing reluctance of China to address the key structural issues (intellectual property theft, forced technology transfer, substantial subsidies for companies and limited access to its financial markets) means that tensions will eventually escalate again."
The House of Commons on Saturday voted to withhold approval of UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson's withdrawal deal until legislation to implement it is in place, forcing Johnson to request another Brexit delay from the EU.
Johnson appears likely to push for a meaningful vote on the withdrawal deal later today, but any debate on the subject could be blocked if the Speaker of the House opts to prioritise other bills.
Oanda analyst Craig Erlam said: "This week is therefore likely to be another chaotic one in Westminster, as Boris tries to get Parliament to back his deal and MPs try to change it and attach conditions, like a second referendum. That will make for another volatile week for the currency as the drama unfolds and we learn whether we're actually leaving this time or not."
Among individual stocks, Tomra Systems surged after the Norwegian recycling specialist reported strong third quarter results.
German payments firm Wirecard was also on the rise following news it has commissioned an independent audit after the Financial Times raised questions about its accounting practices.
Sartorius shares were in the green after the German pharmaceutical company signed an agreement to acquire parts of Danaher’s Life Science portfolio for approximately $750m.
Swedish real estate developer Fabege dropped after weak third quarter results, while German contemporaries such as Deutsche Wohnen were in the red after Berlin's local government approved a five-year rent freeze.