European markets finished Friday on a high note, as investors cheered on news coming out of an OPEC meeting in Austria.
The pan-European STOXX 600 finished the session up 1.09 percent provisionally, with all but two of the sectors closing in the black.
Looking to Europe’s bourses, the FTSE 100 jumped 1.67 percent, the French CAC 40 popped 1.34 percent, while the German DAX closed up just 0.54 percent, as pressure from German automakers weighed.
Sentiment over international trade disputes has shown signs of improvement compared to earlier on this week, allowing investors to edge back into riskier assets. In spite of today’s positive session, on the weekly measurement, the STOXX 600 finished down 1.06 percent.
OPEC ministers in Vienna have agreed on oil production levels for their countries and crude-producing nations cooperating with the cartel.
After a tense few days, producers jointly decided to start pumping more, so that nations would no longer overshoot the target that was set in November 2016. The group agreed to keep 1.2 million barrels per day (bpd) off the market, but on Friday, OPEC stated that they would be cutting output well beyond that mark.
Earlier, Iran’s oil minister, Bijan Zanganeh, told CNBC that more work is needed on a compromise deal, but OPEC was not meeting in order to receive instruction from President Donald Trump.
Oil prices have risen sharply during the course of the session, posting gains of more than 2 percent in afternoon trade. At Europe’s market close, Brent crude stood around $74.57 per barrel, while U.S. crude shot up, trading around $68 per barrel.
Looking at Europe’s sectors, stocks classified into Oil and Gas and Basic Resources were the strongest performers following that latest news from the OPEC meeting. Oil and Gas closed up 3.1 percent, with most energy stocks finishing in the black.
Europe’s banking index also performed well Friday, finishing up 1.34 percent amid a rebound in Italian lenders. A top lawmaker in Italy’s far-right Lega (League) party reportedly said Friday that the government would not look to exit from the single currency. That news partly prompted shares of BPER Banca, UBI Banca and Banco BPM to rise firmly.
Autos stocks however were the worst performers, struggling for gains amid heightened global trade tensions. Stocks in the sector came under severe pressure Friday after President Donald Trump issued a tweet about tariffs, specifically designated to the European Union.
In afternoon trade, the U.S. incumbent threatened a 20 percent tariff on all car imports from the euro zone, if the region didn’t remove duties on U.S. cars. Consequently, European automakers fell deep into the red, with Fiat Chrysler, Ferrari and BMW all closing one percent down or more.
Looking at individual stocks, Airbus issued its strongest warning yet over the impact of Brexit, saying that the U.K.’s withdrawal from the EU without a deal would force it to consider it’s long-term position in Britain. Shares however finished trade up over 2 percent.
Meantime, Inmarsat was the biggest gainer on the STOXX 600, jumping 10.6 percent, after U.S. group EchoStar disclosed stakes in the London-listed firm’s debt and equity.
Meantime in the States, stocks were showed a mixed to positive picture on Friday,with the Dow up in the triple digits as it tried to avoid its longest losing streak in four decades.
Back in Europe, the euro area Composite Flash Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for June suggested that business growth in Europe remains on a recovery path.
Source: CNBC
