By Josie Cox
European shares rose Monday, still feeling the effects of last
week's hints at further stimulus from Mario Draghi.
In early trade, the Stoxx Europe 600 was 0.5% higher, while
Paris's CAC gained 0.9% and London's FTSE 100 rose 0.2%.
Frankfurt's DAX jumped 0.8% higher after of the release of the
German Ifo business climate index for November, which showed a rise
to 104.7, beating expectations.
The equity gains build on last week's rally that followed
European Central Bank president Draghi's speech in Frankfurt, in
which he said it was necessary to bring eurozone inflation up to
the ECB's target "without delay."
Barclays economists however, said Friday's speech was "one of
his most candid to date."
"Although [Draghi] maintained that longer-term indicators on the
whole remain within a range that the ECB considers consistent with
price stability, his language is increasingly reflecting the
growing concern that they soon could also fall below this range,"
they said.
Asset classes considered to be risky, such as southern European
government bonds, remained in strong demand Monday, having also
rallied on Friday. Spain's 10-year government bond yield, for
example, fell below 2% on Monday for the first time in the euro
era. Yields fall as bond prices rise.
Also bolstering global sentiment was China's central-bank
surprise cut in interest rates. Monday, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index
closed almost 2% higher.
You're invited: A free evening event focusing on investing
opportunities in Europe
Will you be in London on Dec. 3? Then you're invited to our
MarketWatch Investing Insights event, "The worse Europe gets, the
more you should invest."
Governments are in trouble, reform efforts have stalled,
unemployment is climbing. The news from the eurozone is bleak, and
investors are fleeing. But that's a mistake: The worse the economic
data from Europe get, the more you should be buying. Why? Because
actions by the ECB will boost asset prices and the stock market in
particular. And, big exporters can grow sales. Lower costs and
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for an evening of cocktails and conversation to explore these
opportunities.
Our panel will be led by MarketWatch Columnist Matthew Lynn, a
renowned financial journalist based in London and the author of
"Bust: Greece, the euro and the Sovereign Debt Crisis." He'll be
joined by Mark Hulbert, MarketWatch columnist and editor of the
Hulbert Financial Digest.
This event is free, but RSVPs are required. It will be held
Wednesday evening, Dec. 3, in London. For more information or to
RSVP, send an email to marketwatchevent@wsj.com.
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