European stocks advanced this week, pushing the Dow Jones STOXX 600 Index to its biggest gain since July, as investors speculated mergers will increase and evidence mounted that the economy is recovering from recession.
Cadbury PLC, the world’s largest confectioner, jumped 37 percent after rejecting a US$16 billion takeover offer from Kraft Foods Inc. BHP Billiton Ltd climbed 8.1 percent as metal prices rose and reports showed industrial production and investment growth in China accelerated. Renault SA surged 10 percent as chief executive officer Carlos Ghosn said the worst of the financial crisis was over.
The STOXX 600 added 3.4 percent to 241.74 this past week, extending an 11-month high. The measure has soared 53 percent since March 9 as companies from Goldman Sachs Group Inc to L’Oreal SA reported better-than-estimated results and the German and French economies unexpectedly grew. The rally has driven the STOXX 600’s valuation to 46.7 times reported company earnings, the highest level since 2003, according to Bloomberg data.
“The upward trend is still intact,” said Daniel Knuchel, who oversees about US$3 billion as chief investment officer at AAM Privatbank AG in Zurich. “M&A activity is a positive factor as it shows that companies are seeing value again. It spurs a certain confidence if you see large transactions like Kraft’s bid for Cadbury.”
European investor confidence increased for a second month in September as the euro-area economy starts to recover, according to data from the Limburg, Germany-based Sentix research institute.
National benchmark indexes increased in all 18 western European markets, except Iceland. The UK’s FTSE 100 advanced 3.3 percent and France’s CAC 40 rose 3.8 percent. Germany’s DAX climbed 4.5 percent as Commerzbank AG rallied.
The VSTOXX Index, which gauges the cost of insurance against declines on the Euro STOXX 50, fell 8.5 percent to the lowest level in a year.
STMicroelectronics NV, Europe’s biggest semiconductor maker, rose 6.5 percent and Infineon Technologies AG, the second-largest, climbed 7.2 percent after Texas Instruments Inc, the second-biggest US chipmaker, increased its sales and earnings forecasts and said demand for so-called analog chips is beginning to recover.
NO HUMAN ERROR: After the incident, the Coast Guard Administration said it would obtain uncrewed aerial vehicles and vessels to boost its detection capacity Authorities would improve border control to prevent unlawful entry into Taiwan’s waters and safeguard national security, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday after a Chinese man reached the nation’s coast on an inflatable boat, saying he “defected to freedom.” The man was found on a rubber boat when he was about to set foot on Taiwan at the estuary of Houkeng River (後坑溪) near Taiping Borough (太平) in New Taipei City’s Linkou District (林口), authorities said. The Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) northern branch said it received a report at 6:30am yesterday morning from the New Taipei City Fire Department about a
IN BEIJING’S FAVOR: A China Coast Guard spokesperson said that the Chinese maritime police would continue to carry out law enforcement activities in waters it claims The Philippines withdrew its coast guard vessel from a South China Sea shoal that has recently been at the center of tensions with Beijing. BRP Teresa Magbanua “was compelled to return to port” from Sabina Shoal (Xianbin Shoal, 仙濱暗沙) due to bad weather, depleted supplies and the need to evacuate personnel requiring medical care, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesman Jay Tarriela said yesterday in a post on X. The Philippine vessel “will be in tiptop shape to resume her mission” after it has been resupplied and repaired, Philippine Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, who heads the nation’s maritime council, said
REGIONAL STABILITY: Taipei thanked the Biden administration for authorizing its 16th sale of military goods and services to uphold Taiwan’s defense and safety The US Department of State has approved the sale of US$228 million of military goods and services to Taiwan, the US Department of Defense said on Monday. The state department “made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale” to the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the US for “return, repair and reshipment of spare parts and related equipment,” the defense department’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a news release. Taiwan had requested the purchase of items and services which include the “return, repair and reshipment of classified and unclassified spare parts for aircraft and related equipment; US Government
More than 500 people on Saturday marched in New York in support of Taiwan’s entry to the UN, significantly more people than previous years. The march, coinciding with the ongoing 79th session of the UN General Assembly, comes close on the heels of growing international discourse regarding the meaning of UN Resolution 2758. Resolution 2758, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1971, recognizes the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the “only lawful representative of China.” It resulted in the Republic of China (ROC) losing its seat at the UN to the PRC. Taiwan has since been excluded from