European stocks rose this week as companies including BNP Paribas SA and European Aeronautic, Defence & Space Co (EADS) reported earnings that beat analysts’ estimates and investors speculated mergers and acquisitions are picking up.
BNP Paribas had its biggest weekly gain in a month as profit at France’s largest bank declined less than projected. EADS rallied after posting record production rates at its Airbus SAS unit. BT Group Plc also climbed on earnings. BHP Billiton Ltd led an advance in basic-resources shares on speculation China may buy a stake in the world’s largest mining company.
Europe’s Dow Jones STOXX 600 Index added 1.5 percent to 329.86, the highest since Feb. 26 and trimming the decline this year to 9.5 percent. Concern that record oil prices, inflation and US$342 billion in credit losses will cut economic and profit growth has weighed on stocks.
“The earnings reports this week were important and one of the driving forces, as were commodities,” said Carsten Klude, head of investment strategy at M.M. Warburg & Co in Hamburg, adding that acquisitions were also buoying the market. “This topic seemed dead for some time but is now back on the agenda.”
Germany’s DAX Index added 2.2 percent. France’s CAC 40 gained 2.4 percent. The UK’s FTSE 100 advanced 1.6 percent. The STOXX 50 also rallied 1.6 percent, as did the Euro STOXX 50, a measure for the euro region.
European economic growth accelerated more in the first quarter than economists estimated. Gross domestic product in the 15 euro countries increased 0.7 percent from the fourth quarter, the European Union’s statistics office said on Thursday. Germany’s 1.5 percent expansion was more than double what economists estimated.
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
PLUGGING HOLES: The amendments would bring the legislation in line with systems found in other countries such as Japan and the US, Legislator Chen Kuan-ting said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) has proposed amending national security legislation amid a spate of espionage cases. Potential gaps in security vetting procedures for personnel with access to sensitive information prompted him to propose the amendments, which would introduce changes to Article 14 of the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法), Chen said yesterday. The proposal, which aims to enhance interagency vetting procedures and reduce the risk of classified information leaks, would establish a comprehensive security clearance system in Taiwan, he said. The amendment would require character and loyalty checks for civil servants and intelligence personnel prior to
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