FRANCE: European equities traded higher on Monday, bucking the trend set in Asia where shares were trading mixed on the back of a revision in Chinese economic growth figures, with commodities trader Glencore soaring by 12 percent after it unveiled a debt revamp plan.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index was over 1 percent higher in early trade.
London’s FTSE index was up over 1.2 percent, the German DAX was nearly 1.3 percent higher and the French CAC also saw a 1.3 percent pop.
While European shares are expected to trade in positive territory Monday, in Asia there was choppy trade with investors cautious after the wild swings in China’s equity markets. China’s National Bureau of Statistics revised its annual economic growth rate for 2014 on Monday to 7.3 percent from the previously released figure of 7.4 percent.
Last Friday’s sell-off on Wall Street after a lackluster jobs report has not helped investor sentiment either. Major U.S. indexes finished more than 1 percent lower last Friday, after the nonfarm payrolls report showed that 173,000 jobs were created in August, missing expectations of 220,000.
The contradicting number had some analysts suggesting that the U.S. central bank might wait until later in the year to raise interest rates, but traders appear to be betting on a rate-rise at next week’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting.
U.S. stock markets will be closed Monday for the Labor Day holiday.
