European stocks rose as oil's biggest weekly drop in two months eased concern that higher fuel costs will curb profits at airlines and leisure companies.
British Airways PLC, Europe’s third-largest carrier, surged the most in four years and Deutsche Lufthansa AG rose as crude declined from record levels. Carnival Corp, the world’s biggest cruise-line company, had its steepest advance in four weeks. Nokia Oyj, the world’s biggest maker of mobile phones, paced gains among technology shares as Dell Inc posted better-than-estimated earnings.
The Dow Jones STOXX 600 Index added 1 percent to 322.12. Concern that record oil prices, inflation and US$386.7 billion in credit losses will slow economic growth has pushed the index down 20 percent from a six-year high in June last year. The measure lost 0.3 percent last month.
“We had a correction in oil prices which is favorable from the point of view of the market,” said Andrew Popper, chief investment officer at SG Hambros in London, who helps manage the equivalent of US$13.7 billion. “Overall, the environment is not as negative.”
Crude oil, which reached a record US$135.09 on May 22, retreated 3.7 percent this week, the steepest drop since March, as a US report on Thursday showed gasoline use declining from a year earlier.
National indexes advanced in 14 of the 18 western European markets. France’s CAC 40 added 1.6 percent, and Germany’s DAX climbed 2.2 percent. The UK’s FTSE 100 slipped 0.6 percent. The STOXX 50 increased 0.4 percent, while the Euro STOXX 50, a measure for the euro area, rose 1.4 percent.
British Airways soared 13 percent. Lufthansa, Europe’s second-biggest airline, rallied 7.6 percent. Fuel accounts for 30 percent of airlines’ costs, according to research by Credit Suisse Group.
More than a dozen carriers have collapsed in the past six months after the price of oil jumped more than 40 percent.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
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UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source