{"id":126114,"date":"2021-05-24T08:59:07","date_gmt":"2021-05-24T08:59:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/precoinnews.com\/?p=126114"},"modified":"2021-05-24T08:59:07","modified_gmt":"2021-05-24T08:59:07","slug":"european-stocks-rebound-after-upbeat-earnings-chip-ma-activity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/precoinnews.com\/markets\/european-stocks-rebound-after-upbeat-earnings-chip-ma-activity\/","title":{"rendered":"European stocks rebound after upbeat earnings, chip M&A activity"},"content":{"rendered":"
(Reuters) -European stocks rose on Thursday after one of the worst selloffs this year as strong earnings and merger talks in the chip sector helped investors look past inflation worries.<\/p> The pan-European STOXX 600 index rose 1.3% after suffering a 1.5% loss in the previous session. Tech stocks gained 2.7% to lead sectoral gains.<\/p>\n Oslo-listed chipmaker Nordic Semiconductor jumped 9.8% to the top of STOXX 600 after an Italian daily reported that Franco-Italian rival STMicroelectronics is mulling an offer to buy the company.<\/p>\n But, Nordic Semiconductor\u2019s chief financial officer said the firm had \u201cno knowledge\u201d of any takeover interest from STMicroelectronics. [nL5N2N71SB]<\/p>\n A rally in economy-linked cyclical sectors on the back of reopening optimism and solid earnings drove the STOXX 600 to record high earlier this month, but inflation worries and a rise in market volatility put the index on course for weekly losses.<\/p>\n \u201cGiven we\u2019re near a cyclical peak in the real economy and confidence indicators, we want to put some defensive names in order to hedge in what could be a more volatile phase in markets,\u201d said Michele Morganti, Generali Investments\u2019 senior equity strategist.<\/p>\n Wall Street\u2019s main indexes also rose after a three-day slide, helped by gains in technology stocks, as the smallest weekly jobless claims since the start of a pandemic-driven recession bolstered risk appetite. [.N]<\/p>\n German producer prices posted their biggest increase in nearly a decade, in a further sign that supply bottlenecks are leading to increased inflation pressure in Europe\u2019s largest economy.<\/p>\n However, Jack Allen-Reynolds, senior Europe economist at Capital Economics said: \u201conce the temporary forces pushing up inflation fade, we expect it to drop back sharply to well below the ECB\u2019s target.\u201d<\/p>\n In earnings, French conglomerate Bouygues edged up 0.3% after it raised the full-year guidance for its telecoms division and reported a smaller than expected first-quarter core loss.<\/p>\n Deutsche Telekom added 2.5% on raising its medium-term core profit outlook.<\/p>\n Budget airline EasyJet fell 2.1% after it warned that late announcement of travel rules reduced visibility as it reported a wider half-year loss.<\/p>\n UK rail operator Trainline slumped 23.3%, marking its worst day on record, with traders pointing to hit from a reorganisation of Britain\u2019s railway system.<\/p>\n