European Markets Climbed On China Data & European Manufacturing PMIs

(RTTNews) - The European markets ended the first day of the new trading week in positive territory. The markets received a boost from the increase in Chinese non-manufacturing data, as well as the positive European manufacturing PMI reports for October. Investors were also encouraged by strong quarterly results from HSBC. However, airline stocks were weak after Ryanair slashed its guidance.

China's non-manufacturing sector expanded at a faster pace in October, a combined survey by the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing and the National Bureau of Statistics revealed Sunday. The official purchasing managers' index (PMI) for the service sector moved up to 56.3 in October from 55.4 in September. In August, the score was 53.9.

Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas President Richard Fisher said the central bank's accommodative monetary policy has been countered by Federal government's inability to resolve the budget stalemate, delaying the U.S. economic recovery.

"The economy of the United States is hog-tied by a government that is sadly ineffective and, in fact, counterproductive. The inability of our government to get its act together has countered the pro-cyclical role of the Federal Reserve," Fisher told before the Australian Business Economists in Sydney today.

Euro area banking assets dropped nearly 12 percent by the end of 2012 compared with 2008, with significant adjustments taking place in 2009 amid the global financial crisis, the European Central Bank said in a report on Monday.

The banking sector assets in Eurozone totaled EUR 29.5 trillion, the ECB said in its latest Banking Structures Report, which analyzed the main structural developments in the euro area banking sector: the capacity, consolidation and concentration of banks and related changes over time.

On a consolidated basis, the number of credit institutions shrunk 10 percent to 2,645 from 2,909 during the four-year period, the report said.

However, the median Tier 1 capital ratio in the euro area increased to 12.7 percent in 2012 from 8 percent in 2008.

The British economy will likely expand at a faster pace than estimated earlier on improved business investment and exports, and is set to remain steady through 2015 and beyond, a report from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) revealed Sunday.

The latest economic forecast from the CBI showed that the economy will expand 1.4 percent this year, faster than 1.2 percent the business lobby had predicted in August. The upward revision mainly reflects third quarter's better-than expected GDP growth and improving sentiment across the major business sectors.

Going ahead, the growth rate for 2014 has been upgraded to 2.4 percent from 2.3 percent. Quarter-on-quarter growth will be limited to 0.6 percent in every quarter next year as government spending begins to drag on GDP, the report said.

Fitch Ratings upgraded the outlook on Spain's sovereign credit rating to 'stable' from 'negative', saying the country's banking sector reforms have "advanced well" and that the government has made significant progress in fiscal adjustment.

Fitch rates the country's long-term foreign and local currency issuer default ratings (IDRs) and senior unsecured bond ratings at 'BBB'. The short-term foreign currency IDR has been affirmed at 'F2' and the country ceiling at 'AA'.

The Euro Stoxx 50 index of eurozone bluechip stocks increased by 0.26 percent, while the Stoxx Europe 50 index, which includes some major U.K. companies, added 0.18 percent.

The DAX of Germany climbed by 0.25 percent and the CAC 40 of France advanced by 0.36 percent. The FTSE 100 of the U.K. rose by 0.45 percent, but the SMI of Switzerland fell by 0.33 percent.

In Frankfurt, K+S gained 9.27 percent. HSBC upgraded its rating on the stock to 'Neutral'' from ''Underweight.''

Fuchs Petrolub increased by 5.99 percent. The lubricants maker reported higher profit for the first nine months of the year, even as adverse currency impacted sales. The company also backed its full year goals.

In Paris, Danone finished lower by 0.87 percent. Goldman Sachs downgraded its rating on the stock to ''Neutral'' from ''Buy.''

In London, HSBC climbed by 2.46 percent, after its third-quarter report.

Weir Group sank by 3.55 percent. The engineering solutions provider said its revenues and profits for the third quarter were slightly below expectations, due to project delivery delays in Minerals and a more gradual-than-anticipated recovery in upstream Oil & Gas markets. The company also issued a profit warning for full-year 2013.

Ryanair plunged by 12.50 percent. The low-cost airline cut its full year profit forecast, citing a fall in average prices. Peer easyJet fell by 4.78 percent.

BP advanced by 0.85 percent, after Morgan Stanley upgraded it to "Equal weight" from "Underweight."

PostNL increased by 7.51 percent in Amsterdam, after it raised its full year guidance.

Eurozone investor confidence increased strongly in November, surpassing economists' expectations, to hit a two-and-a-half year high, a monthly survey by the think tank Sentix showed on Monday. The investor confidence index rose for the fourth consecutive month to 9.3 from October's 6.1. Economists were looking for a modest increase to 6.5.

The Eurozone manufacturing sector carried its modest third quarter recovery into the final quarter of the year as initially estimated, final data from Markit Economics showed Monday. The manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 51.3, in line with flash estimate from 51.1 in September.

Germany's manufacturing sector grew at a faster-than-expected rate during October, led by growth in production and new orders, survey data released by Markit Economics showed on Monday. The final Markit/BME Germany Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 51.7 from September's 51.1. The flash estimate was 51.5.

Passenger car sales in Germany increased in October after recording a modest decline in the previous month, latest figures released by the Federal Motor Transport Authority showed Monday. Registration of new passenger cars increased 2.3 percent year-on-year to 265,441 units in October. This followed a 1.2 percent decrease in September.

Activity in the French manufacturing sector decreased for the twentieth consecutive month in October, and the rate of fall was faster than previously estimated, final data from a survey conducted by Markit Economics and CDAF showed Monday. The seasonally adjusted purchasing managers' index for the manufacturing sector dropped to 49.1 in October from 49.8 in September. The flash estimates were for a score of 49.4.

The U.K. construction activity growth in October, surpassed August's recent peak, to log the steepest expansion in more than six years helped by residential building, survey results from Markit Economics showed Monday. The Markit/Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply Purchasing Managers' Index for construction climbed to 59.4 from 58.9 in September. The latest score was the highest since September 2007.

New orders for U.S. manufactured goods showed a notable increase in the month of September, according to a report released by the Commerce Department on Monday, with orders rebounding after showing an unexpected decrease in August.

The report said factory orders jumped by 1.7 percent in September after edging down by 0.1 percent in August. While the increase in orders in September matched economist estimates, orders had been expected to rise by 0.3 percent in the previous month.