Stocks rebound after Wednesday's fall

Shares in TUI Travel rose by 2.9 pence to 223 pence, after the travel company said most of its summer programme was fully sold, keeping it on track to meet expectations for the financial year.

EUROPE

EUROPEAN STOCKS rose, after falling sharply in the previous session, as Spain’s cabinet approved the 2013 budget.

Crédit Agricole advanced 3.8 per cent after saying it may soon sell its Emporiki Greek unit. Opap jumped 3 per cent after Greece’s Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund published calls for expressions of interest for the government’s stake in the company.

H&M, Europe’s second-largest clothing retailer, slid 5.8 per cent as third-quarter profit missed analyst projections. Net income was 3.62 billion Swedish kroner (€48.5 million) in the three months ended August 31st the Stockholm-based company said.

Raiffeisen Bank International rose 3.5 per cent to €28.86.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index added 0.3 per cent to 271.65 at the close. European shares have rallied 8.2 per cent so far this quarter, heading for the biggest quarterly advance since 2009.

National benchmark indexes climbed in 14 of the 18 western- European markets.

France’s Cac 40 rose 0.7 per cent, while the Dax gained 0.2 per cent, but Spain’s Ibex 35 fell 0.2 per cent.

NEW YORK

The S&P 500 snapped a five-day string of declines in a broad-based rally as Spain’s plans for economic reform eased some worries about one of the euro zone’s most troubled countries.

Apple, up 2.4 per cent at $681.32, gave the biggest lift to the Nasdaq. Intel was up 1.9 per cent at $23.09. After the bell, US-listed shares of Research In Motion surged 15 per cent to $8.21 after the Canadian maker of the BlackBerry reported a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss.

In the regular session, the stock closed at $7.14 – up 2 per cent.

Tempur-Pedic International agreed to buy rival mattress maker Sealy for about $242 million and assume about $750 million in debt. Tempur-Pedic shares gained 14.4 per cent to $30.64, while Sealy’s stock rose 2.3 per cent to $2.19.

Discover Financial Services reported third-quarter earnings that beat expectations and its shares climbed 7.3 per cent to $39.71. – Additional reporting: Reuters/Bloomberg