European Markets Climbed After Long Easter Holiday

(RTTNews) - The European markets returned to trading Tuesday, following a 4-day weekend for the Easter holiday. Eurozone investor confidence data rose to the highest level in nearly seven-and-a-half years in April. The weaker than expected U.S. jobs report for March, which was released Friday, also drove the markets sharply to the upside. Investors are optimistic that the Federal Reserve may delay its planned increase in interest rates, due to the weak data.

The Fed may provide additional hints about the outlook for interest rates with the release of the minutes of its latest monetary policy meeting on Wednesday. Investors will also be watching for the release of quarterly results from Alcoa after the close of trading on Wednesday, which is views as the unofficial kick-off to the U.S. earnings reporting season.

Investors continue to monitor the situation in Greece. The Greek repayment deadline to International Monetary Fund is on April 9th, while a deal to secure funding from Eurozone creditors appears weeks away.

The debt-laden country is due to repay an IMF installment of EUR 460 million on Thursday followed by its social security bill on April 14. After a meeting in Washington with IMF officials, Yanis Varoufakis, the country's finance minister, said on Sunday that Greece "intends to meet all obligations to all its creditors, ad infinitum."

The Euro Stoxx 50 index of eurozone bluechip stocks increased by 1.32 percent, while the Stoxx Europe 50 index, which includes some major U.K. companies, added 1.60 percent.

The DAX of Germany climbed by 1.30 percent and the CAC 40 of France rose by 1.52 percent. The FTSE of the U.K. gained 1.88 percent and the SMI of Switzerland finished higher by 1.43 percent.

In Frankfurt, Deutsche Lufthansa fell by 2.08 percent. JP Morgan downgraded its rating on the stock.

RWE climbed by 4.14 percent and E.ON added 3.97 percent.

In Paris, Vivendi increased by 1.23 percent. The company confirmed that it wants to acquire Dailymotion, a video streaming website. Dailymotion is currently owned by Orange, which gained 1.62 percent.

Air France-KLM dropped by 2.70 percent, after a downgrade from JP Morgan.

Technip advanced by 4.36 percent and Total added 3.82 percent.

In London, Shire climbed by 4.36 percent. The drug-maker said it has reached an agreement with the U.S. FDA on a clear regulatory path for SHP465, an investigational oral stimulant medication being evaluated as a potential treatment for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder in adults.

Marks & Spencer rose by 1.26 percent, after Societe Generale upgraded its rating on the stock to "Buy" from "Hold."

BG Group surged by 6.74 percent and Royal Dutch Shell gained 3.86 percent.

Rio Tinto increased by 4.03 percent and Glencore climbed by 3.53 percent.

International Consolidated Airlines Group dropped by 1.17 percent. JP Morgan downgraded its rating on the stock to "Neutral" from "Overweight."

TNT Express surged by 28.13 percent in Amsterdam, after the troubled logistics firm agreed to be taken over by U.S. giant FedEx.

Eurozone investor confidence rose to the highest level in nearly seven-and-a-half years in April, amid signs of strengthening in the euro area economy, survey data from the think tank Sentix revealed Tuesday. The investor confidence index for Eurozone climbed to 20 from 18.6 in March. The latest score was the highest since August 2007.

The Eurozone private sector continued to improve in March with the Purchasing Mangers' Index rising to an 11-month high to mark its joint highest level for almost four years. The final composite output index rose to 54 in March from 53.3 in February, final data from Markit Economics showed today. A reading above 50 indicates expansion in the private sector.

But the score was marginally below the flash estimate of 54.1. The reading reached an 11-month high and its joint-highest for almost four years.

The composite output index for Germany rose to 55.4 in March from 53.8 in February suggesting accelerated output growth in the private sector. The flash score for March was 55.3.

At the same time, the services PMI came in at a 6-month high of 55.4 in March, up from 54.7 in February. It was slightly above the flash reading of 55.3.

In France, the final composite output index slid to 51.5 from 52.2 in February. The flash score was 51.7. Similarly, the services PMI came in at 52.4 in March, down from 53.4 in February and below the initial estimate of 52.8.

Eurozone producer prices logged the first monthly increase in five months in February, data from Eurostat showed Tuesday. Industrial producer prices for the domestic market rose 0.5 percent from January, when they fell 1.1 percent, which was revised from 0.9 percent fall.

British services sector registered its fastest growth in seven months in March as wider economic recovery and improving confidence boosted new business, survey data from Markit Economics and the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply showed Tuesday.