European stocks climb on earnings reports

European stocks climbed amid deal activity and earnings reports, resuming a rally that had stalled earlier this week. Equity markets shrugged off mixed Chinese data that showed growth in the world’s second-biggest economy was lower than anticipated.

Energy shares sank along with oil prices as crude oil flirted with a two-month low as traders worried about growing US stockpiles. Copper prices neared a six-year low early in the session.

DUBLIN

The Iseq index added 0.4 per cent, with many of the major stocks making modest but not spectacular gains. Building materials group

CRH

rose 0.3 per cent to €23.32, while

Ryanair

was up 0.2 per cent at the close of trading at €14.57.

Paddy Power added 3 per cent to finish at €111. On Monday, the UK Competition and Markets Authority invited "interested parties" to comment on its proposed merger with UK rival Betfair.

Elsewhere, food group Kerry rose 0.9 per cent to €72.95, while Origin Enterprises finished at €6.80, up 0.8 per cent. Bank of Ireland also finished the day almost 1 per cent higher at 33 cent. Paper and packaging group Smurfit Kappa fell 1 per cent to €25.73, while dairy giant Glanbia declined 0.9 per cent to €17.33.

LONDON

The FTSE 100 closed up almost 0.4 per cent as the blue-chip index was lifted by gains for credit data company

Experian

and brewer

SABMiller

, which rose after AB InBev launched a $100 billion-plus bid for the firm.

Experian was among the top FTSE 100 performers, rising 2.3 per cent after a price target upgrade from broker Citigroup. The stock had already surged on Tuesday following strong company results.

SABMiller progressed 1.9 per cent after AB InBev launched its takeover bid and agreed to sell SABMiller's 58 per cent stake in US joint venture MillerCoors.

Supermarket operator Sainsbury slid 7.1 per cent after reporting a drop in first-half profits and announcing plans to cut more prices to close the gap on discounters Aldi and Lidl.

Telecoms provider TalkTalk, which is in the FTSE 250 mid-cap index, jumped 13.2 per cent. Its shares slumped in October after the company fell victim to a cyber attack, but the stock recovered after it raised its interim dividend and maintained its guidance for this financial year.

EUROPE

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index added 0.7 per cent at the close of trading, after rising as much as 1.2 per cent. The benchmark gauge has rebounded 12 per cent from a September low. The Dax index finished up 0.7 per cent in Frankfurt, while in Paris, the Cac 40 added more than 0.8 per cent.

Danish brewer Carlsberg climbed 6.2 per cent after reporting profit that beat estimates and announcing job cuts to reduce costs. German consumer and industrial goods company Henkel climbed 6.7 per cent after raising its annual earnings projection.

However, French media giant Vivendi slid 5.8 per cent after posting profit that missed analysts' estimates, while broadcaster Mediaset slipped 9.5 per cent after reporting a wider-than-forecast net loss.

NEW YORK

US stocks fluctuated as investors continued to consider whether the economy is growing at a sufficient rate to cope with the possibility of higher interest rates as early as next month.

Home security company ADT jumped 5.1 per cent to lead industrials after its quarterly results beat analysts' estimates and it predicted growth in its subscriber base.

Macy's slumped the most in more than six years following a cut in its profit forecast. Revenue at the largest US department store chain fell the most since 2010, which the retailer blamed on warm weather and weak traffic trends. The fallout spread to other retail stocks, with Wal-Mart Stores losing 1.8 per cent, and Target dropping 3 per cent. – (Additional reporting: Bloomberg /Reuters)