Modupe Gbadeyanka
By Investors Hub
European stocks have moved sharply higher on Tuesday to hit nine-week highs despite weak data and mixed earnings updates.
Regional markets followed Asian peers higher after a financial services royal commission refrained from recommending harsher measures against Australian banks.
While the U.K.?s FTSE 100 Index has jumped by 1.3 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index are both up by 1 percent.
BP Plc has soared in London after the oil and gas company swung to a profit in the fourth quarter of 2018 and raised its dividend.
RhythmOne has also jumped a day after Taptica announced the acquisition of the company for $176 million in an all-stock deal.
Danish jewelry manufacturer and retailer Pandora has also spiked after announcing a two-year transformation plan.
Meanwhile, Apple supplier AMS has moved sharply lower. The company posted a sharp drop in its 2018 fourth quarter adjusted net profit and forecast a drop in revenue in the first quarter of 2019 amid weak smartphone demand.
Indivior is also posting a steep loss after an unfavorable U.S. court ruling in a case related to its best-selling opioid addiction drug Suboxone.
In economic news, investors have shrugged off data showing that growth in the eurozone nearly stalled in January. IHS Markit’s composite final PMI dipped to 51.0 in the month from December’s 51.1, hitting its lowest reading since July 2013.
A measure of eurozone retail sales also fell as expected in December amid declines in non-food sales and online purchases.
Elsewhere, U.K. service sector growth slowed more than expected in January, moving closer to stagnation, as new orders decreased for the first time in two-and-a-half years, preliminary data from IHS Markit showed.
