MW: European stocks on track for strongest week in a year
LONDON (MarketWatch) — European stocks rose Friday, with the market’s benchmark moving toward its best weekly gain in a year.
The Stoxx Europe 600 SXXP, -0.44% was up 0.5% to 340.73, led by gains for the basic-materials, financial and consumer-services sectors. Friday’s moves added to a 3% surge on Thursday that ushered the benchmark to its best daily gain since late November 2011.
The pan-European index is poised for a weekly rise of 3%, which would be its strongest such advance since late December 2013, according to FactSet data.
Topping the index were shares of Atos SE ATO, +4.92% rising 5.5% as the French computer service company said it will acquire Xerox Corp.’s XRX, +3.19% IT outsourcing business for $1.05 billion in cash.
But shares of Air France-KLM SA AF, -8.42% dropped 6%, sitting near the bottom of the Stoxx 600, after the carrier cut its 2014 earnings forecast by 200 million euros ($250 million), in its third profit warning this year.
On the country indexes, France’s CAC 40 PX1, -0.73% rose 0.6% to 4,274.96. Germany’s DAX 30 DAX, -0.69% was up 0.5% to 9,863.36, and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 UKX, +0.21% picked up 0.8% to 6,515.21.
Russia’s MICEX index XX:MCX however, lost 2.6% to 1,439.12, in what’s been a turbulent week for Russian assets, as oil prices languished around five-year lows and the ruble was crushed against the dollar. The ruble USDRUB, -4.80% earlier this week fell to a low of 80.1 against the greenback, but has since pared the loss. The dollar on Friday was buying 60.098 rubles, compared with 62.096 rubles on Thursday.