A rally in mining shares buoyed European stocks on Friday, sending them to their biggest weekly gain since July.
Commodity companies climbed for a ninth day, the longest streak since 2000. Zinc producer Boliden AB jumped 13 percent after Glencore PLC cut its output of the metal by one-third, while ArcelorMittal and Anglo American PLC gained 6 percent or more. Glencore gained, taking its weekly surge to a record 36 percent.
“We’ve seen a real rebound in sentiment and markets which has been fantastic,” said Ben Kumar, who helps oversee about US$14 billion at Seven Investment Management in London. “There’s a lot of ground to recover before we can say we’re back in an environment that isn’t being traded so violently. We need a good run of green, which we’ve seen in the STOXX 600, just to let people know the world’s not falling apart.”
The STOXX Europe 600 Index climbed 0.3 percent to 362.82 at the close of trading. The gauge posted its sixth straight gain, its longest rally since July, after minutes from the US Federal Reserve’s meeting last month showed officials put off a rate increase citing risks to the US economy and inflation from China.
The STOXX 600 is up 4.3 percent this week, rebounding after its worst quarterly rout since 2011.
A gauge of carmakers was also among Friday’s biggest advancers, capping its best weekly rally since 2011. PSA Peugeot Citroen and Volkswagen AG gained at least 2.8 percent.
Some stocks climbed on deal activity. DSV A/S jumped 7.2 percent after the Danish logistics company agreed to buy UTi Worldwide Inc to expand in the US air and sea freight markets.
Norsk Hydro ASA gained 5 percent after signing a letter of intent to acquire Vale SA’s 40 percent stake in Brazilian bauxite producer Mineracao Rio do Norte.
Credit Suisse Group AG pared gains of as much as 2.6 percent to close 0.9 percent higher after people familiar with the matter said the Swiss bank is considering a stock sale that may raise as much as 8 billion francs (US$8.3 billion).
Shares fell yesterday after the Financial Times reported the lender is preparing a “substantial” share sale.
Givaudan SA advanced 4.4 percent after reporting quarterly comparable sales growth that exceeded estimates.
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