By Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- European stock markets posted
broad-based gains on Tuesday, with shares of Danone SA leading the
charge north after a job-cut announcement, while investors also
awaited the latest take on economic sentiment in Germany.
The Stoxx Europe 600 index rose 0.2% to 287.21, on track to
break a three-day losing streak.
Shares of Danone jumped 5.4% after the yogurt maker announced
plans to slash around 900 jobs in Europe in response to the
region's downturn.
And shares of HSBC Holdings PLC (HBC) slipped 0.4% after Morgan
Stanley cut the bank to equal weight from overweight. In the same
vein, Morgan Stanley lifted Standard Chartered PLC to overweight
from equal weight, helping lift the shares 2.3%.
Elsewhere, investors looked to the release of the ZEW Indicator
of Economic Sentiment to gauge whether optimism that the German
economy is improving persists.
In January, the index jumped to the highest level since May
2010, fueling hopes that Europe's largest economy is making its way
out of the crisis. The report is due at 10 a.m. London time or 5
a.m. U.S. Eastern.
Germany's DAX 30 index added 0.4% to 7,660.03, with shares of
health-care major Bayer AG up 1.7%.
In France, the CAC 40 index put on 0.7% to 3,693.55. Shares of
Carrefour SA gained 1%, after J.P. Morgan Cazenove initiated
coverage of the supermarket retailer with an overweight rating.
The bank also initiated coverage of U.K. supermarket retailer
Tesco PLC (TESO) with an overweight recommendation, helping send
the shares 0.6% higher.
The FTSE 100 index gained 0.1% to 6,326.87.
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