European stocks climbed Friday, with energy shares spearheading the move higher as oil prices gained.
The Stoxx Europe 600 SXXP, +1.55% moved up 1.7% to 331.99 as all sectors advanced. The move comes on the heels of Thursday’s 2% jump.
Holding down the bottom end of the index was Royal Bank of Scotland PLC RBS, -8.16% RBS, +3.94% as shares stumbled 9%. The bank delayed making dividend payouts after it posted its eighth consecutive annual loss, which stemmed from large restructuring and conduct charges.
But the Stoxx 600 oil and gas sector SXEP, +3.21% moved up more than 3% as crude prices CLJ6, +2.00% LCOJ6, +1.98% gained ground. Oil futures swung sharply higher Thursday after Venezuela’s oil minister announced plans to meet with representatives from Russia, Saudi Arabia and Qatar in mid-March.
“The correlation between oil and risk appetite is still alive and well and a key factor for traders,” said Richard Perry, market analyst at Hantec Markets, in a note. “It is difficult for me to focus on too much else other than the oil price at the moment, because it remains such an important driver of risk appetite especially when it comes to equities.”
Among oil producers, Tullow Oil PLC TLW, +6.56% surged 6.7% and Spain’s Repsol SA REP, +3.48% tacked on 4.4%. Shares of Italy’s Eni SpA ENI, +5.46% sprang up 5.8% even as the company’s fourth-quarter net loss more than tripled, on a write-down the value of its assets because of the recent plunge in oil prices.
Prices for West Texas Intermediate oil CLJ6, +2.00% were heading toward a weekly rise of nearly 6%. Meanwhile, the Stoxx 600 was looking at a weekly gain of 1.8%, building on last week’s 4.5% advance.
Indexes: Gains for resource shares helped lift the U.K’s FTSE 100 UKX, +1.06% up by 1.2% to 6,083.84. Also on the index, Burberry BRBY, +4.07% shares climbed 4% after a ratings upgrade to buy from neutral at Nomura. The move comes in anticipation of change as the luxury fashion retailer conducts a review of its business.
Germany’s DAX 30 DAX, +2.08% pushed up 2.4% to 9,552.17, and France’s CAC 40 PX1, +1.97% gained 2% to 4,331.74. Italy’s FTSE MIB FTSEMIB, +1.84% picked up 2% to 17,436.02, while Spain’s IBEX 35 IBEX, +1.51% popped up 1.8% to 8,361.40.
The euro EURUSD, +0.0091% was off 0.2% at 1.1014.
Data: From France, consumer prices rose 0.2% this month, according to the Insee statistics agency. But producer prices fell 0.8% last month as prices for refining, food and energy dropped.
Businesses in the eurozone became more downbeat about their prospects in February, European Commission data showed, suggesting recent turmoil in financial markets may take a toll on the region’s growth.
