EUROPE MARKETS: European Stocks Rally As Trump Hints At Softening Huawei Ban; U.K.'s May Quits

By Emily Horton

European parliamentary elections kick off in earnest

Europe's bourses headed higher Friday as investors appeared to find some buying appetite as President Donald Trump moderated his tactics against Huawei Technologies Inc., signaling some softening in U.S.-China trade animosities.

How did markets perform?

The Stoxx Europe 600 index climbed by 0.7% to 376.51 on Friday, after tumbling by 1.4% the previous day.

In Germany, the DAX (DAX) added 0.9% to 12,053.70, France's CAC 40 advanced 0.9% to 5,326.34 and Italy's FTSE MIB jumped by 1.6% to 20,461.96.

Meanwhile, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 moved up by 0.8% at 7,288.56, following a sharp drop the day before for the British bourse.

The pound rebounded to $1.2674 from $1.2657 the previous day. The euro also edged up to $1.118, after finishing at $1.1181 on Thursday.

What's moving the markets?

Which stocks are active?

The share price of Casino Guichard-Perrachon SA shot up by 17%, after the group confirmed late on Thursday that it wasn't connected to the safeguard proceedings (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/casino-not-part-of-rallys-bankruptcy-proceedings-2019-05-24) related to its majority shareholder Rallye .

Old Mutual Ltd. dropped 1%, after the South African-based insurer announced it had suspended its chief executive Peter Mayo, after losing confidence and trust in his ability as the leader of the business, according to Sky News (https://news.sky.com/story/old-mutual-suspends-boss-over-breakdown-in-trust-11727406).

B&M European Value Retail SA (BME) sank by 3%, after concerns over the firms business and a weak period for homeware sales dulled the bargain retailers reinvigorated profit and revenue growth, the Times reported (https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/business/b-m-shares-discounted-after-german-troubles-dent-profits-9023drcgb?utm_source=newsletter&utm_campaign=newsletter_103&utm_medium=email&utm_content=103_6119492&CMP=TNLEmail_118918_6119492_103).

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 24, 2019 08:15 ET (12:15 GMT)

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