{"id":123288,"date":"2021-04-30T17:33:37","date_gmt":"2021-04-30T17:33:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/precoinnews.com\/?p=123288"},"modified":"2021-04-30T17:33:37","modified_gmt":"2021-04-30T17:33:37","slug":"europes-stoxx-600-marks-third-month-of-gains-on-earnings-recovery-hopes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/precoinnews.com\/markets\/europes-stoxx-600-marks-third-month-of-gains-on-earnings-recovery-hopes\/","title":{"rendered":"Europe's STOXX 600 marks third month of gains on earnings, recovery hopes"},"content":{"rendered":"
(Reuters) -European stocks ended lower on Friday after dismal GDP data, but marked a third straight month of gains on strong corporate earnings and optimism about an economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p> The pan-regional STOXX 600 index fell 0.3%, hovering below its all-time high, and ending the month 1.8% higher.<\/p>\n Data showed the euro zone economy dipped into a second technical recession after a smaller than expected contraction in the first quarter, but is now set for recovery as pandemic curbs are lifted amid accelerating vaccination campaigns.<\/p>\n The German economy contracted by a greater-than-expected 1.7%, hit by renewed lockdowns, while the French economy grew more than expected.<\/p>\n But strong earnings showed companies in the euro zone were well on their way to recover from the impact of the pandemic.<\/p>\n AstraZeneca jumped 4.3% as the British drugmaker posted better-than-expected results and forecast second half growth.<\/p>\n Swedish Match rose 0.7% after the tobacco group reported a much higher first-quarter operating profit than expected, helped by growth in its Smokefree product segment. UK peers British American Tobacco and Imperial Brands rose more than 2% each.<\/p>\n Broadly, European earnings have come in much stronger than expected, with a higher than usual 71% of companies beating profit expectations in the first quarter, according to Refinitiv IBES data. A third of STOXX 600 companies have published results so far.<\/p>\n \u201cExpectations are high, companies are beating even these elevated expectations, and yet the market is responding with caution,\u201d Lewis Grant, portfolio manager at Federated Hermes, wrote in a note.<\/p>\n \u201cAt current valuations, and with much pandemic related uncertainty remaining, many investors are more concerned about downside than upside.\u201d<\/p>\n Strong earnings from British firms helped the European retailers sector outpace its peers in April with a 6.7% bounce, while automobile stocks lagged as a global semiconductor shortage hurt production.<\/p>\n Banking stocks came under pressure on Friday as euro zone bond yields eased from their highest level since January 2020. But the sector raced past its peers this week with a near 6% gain, driven by a swathe of strong earnings.<\/p>\n Barclays tumbled 7% despite reporting a quarterly profit that more than doubled, while France\u2019s BNP Paribas slipped 0.8% on higher costs.<\/p>\n Spain\u2019s Banco Sabadell jumped 8.7% to the top of the STOXX 600 after its quarterly profit beat market expectations, helped by strength in its British unit TSB.<\/p>\n