European Markets Gain
European markets were up Wednesday, breaking a two-day fall.
The FTSE was up 0.8%. The CAC 40 Paris gained 0.6% while the German DAX was up half a percent.
In the U.K., government data showed the country’s trade deficit narrowed more-than-expected in February to 9.09 billion pounds from a downwardly revised deficit of 9.46 billion pounds in January.
Investors will look forward to the minutes of the U.S. Fed’s last policy meeting due later in the day.
Stocks on the Move
RBS gained 1.4% while HSBC and Lloyds were up 1.3% and 1.2% each, respectively.
Travel stocks were up after a broker upgrade for Ryanair which rose about 4%. TUI Travel PLC was up 2.2% while Thomas Cook gained 2.9%. easyJet PLC rose 2.6% while over in Paris, Air France-KLM soared 2.9%.
Retailer Casino surged 5.1% after a broker upgrade.
Deutsche Lufthansa AG was up 0.8% ahead of its traffic numbers.
German auto majors also revved in high gear after a couple of broker upgrades, one for Volkswagen, and the other for Porsche. Volkswagen was up 3.2% while Porsche raced ahead 4.3%. Daimler was up 1.1%.
