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BREAKING:

INFLATION IN CANADA UP SLIGHTLY TO 2.9% IN MARCH

On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, the CPI increased 0.3% last month, says StatCan

Europe higher as traders eye ECB stimulus; BMPS jumps 8%; Credit Suisse up 6%

Silvia Amaro
Updated
Stefano Rellandini | Reuters. Credit Suisse reported a strong rise in net income for its second quarter on Friday, adding that assets under management had hit new highs for the bank.

European stocks were higher on Wednesday as investors shifted their focus to an upcoming meeting of the European Central Bank (ECB), where they expect further monetary stimulus to be announced.


The Stoxx 600 (STOXX: .STOXX)was higher with all major bourses and most sectors trading in the green. Autos was outperforming other sectors in late morning trade, climbing more than 2.5 percent.

Basic resources (STOXX: .SXPP) and banking stocks (STOXX: .SX7P-CH) were also gaining with a rise in iron prices helping the mining firms. Banks were up by 1.8 percent - reaching new record levels.. Recent reassurances on the Italian banking system seem to be calming contagion fears across the euro area.

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In Italy, shares of the troubled Monte Dei Paschi (Milan Stock Exchange: BMPS-IT) were at the top of the index, jumping more than 8 percent on reports that the government is preparing to inject money and take a controlling stake in the bank. Both the Italian Treasury and the bank itself have declined to comment on this report, according to Reuters.

Meanwhile, economists and traders were gearing up for the ECB's rate announcement on Thursday. "European Central Bank (ECB) President Mario Draghi is set to announce an extension of his quantitative easing (QE) program after the bank's Governing Council meeting in Frankfurt on 8 December. The base case is an extension by six months, prolonging QE from its currently envisaged end date in March through September 201," Carsten Nickel, deputy director of research at Teneo Intelligence, said in a note this week.


Credit Suisse (Swiss Exchange: CSGN-CH) lowered its 2018 pre-tax income targets for its Asia Pacific and international wealth management divisions. It also reported on Wednesday more than 1 billion Swiss francs ($0.99 billion) in extra cost cuts, according to Reuters. Its shares were up by 6 percent on the news.

Post Nl (Euronext Amsterdam: PNL-NL) was at the bottom of the pan-European benchmark, falling more than 11 percent, after rejecting a bid by BPost. (Euronext Brussels: BPOST-BE)

Data released in Germany showed the country's industrial production recovering only marginally in October, increasing by 0.3 percent on the month. It was up by 1.2 percent on the year.

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