European Stocks Gain Momentum

By Investors Hub

European stocks are somewhat subdued on Monday even as the U.K. markets rise sharply on the back of a weaker pound after the government ramped up its preparations for a no-deal Brexit in October.

The British pound slid to a two-year low against the dollar after Chancellor Sajid Javid said he would announce an urgent spending blitz to prepare for a no-deal departure from the European Union on October 31.

Caution crept in elsewhere across Europe as investors looked ahead to more talks on the U.S.-China trade dispute as well as the Federal Reserve meeting.

The Fed is expected to announce a rate cut of 25 basis points, bringing the Fed funds rate target to 2-2.25 percent. Investors will be looking for more information on whether the Fed may announce further rate cuts in the future.

While the U.K.?s FTSE 100 Index has spiked by 1.9 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index are both up by 0.2 percent.

Just Eat has soared and Takeaway.com has jumped after the companies reached an agreement in principle on the key terms of a possible all-share combination.

Medical technology company Siemens Healthineers has also surged higher after reporting a 20 percent rise in third-quarter net income and confirming its full-year outlook.

Sanofi has also rallied. The French pharmaceutical company upwardly revised its guidance for full-year business earnings growth to approximately 5 percent after recording a solid business performance in the second quarter.

London Stock Exchange Group shares have also spiked after the exchange operator confirmed that it is in discussions to buy financial data and trading platform provider Refinitiv for a total enterprise value of about US$27 billion.

On the other hand, Swiss drug giant Novartis has declined. The company announced that a global Phase III PARAGON-HF study in heart failure patients with preserved ejection fraction or HFpEF narrowly missed statistical significance for its composite primary endpoint.

Heineken N.V., the world’s second largest brewer, has also slumped after its first-half profit missed estimates.

Deutsche Boerse AG shares have also fallen. The German stock exchange operator said that it does not expect its discussions with Refinitiv Holdings on a potential purchase of certain FX business units to be successfully completed.