Healthcare workers administer Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines at a vaccination site inside a church in the Bronx borough of New York, on Friday, Feb. 5, 2021.
- Shares of Dialog Semiconductor rose 16% Monday after Renesas Electronics Corp said it had agreed to buy the Frankfurt-listed chip designer for 4.9 billion euros ($5.90 billion) in cash.
- Meanwhile, shares of water and waste management firm Veolia were down slightly Monday after a French court blocked any hostile takeover of its smaller rival Suez, whose shares were also lower.
LONDON — European stocks closed higher Monday with markets tracking positive sentiment in Asia and the U.S.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 index ended the session 0.3% higher, with most sectors and major bourses in positive territory. Italy's FTSE MIB was among the top-performing indexes, climbing 1.5% after former European Central Bank President Mario Draghi secured the support of two key parties for forming a new government.
European market sentiment was buoyed by positive market action globally, although earnings and coronavirus developments were still in focus. News that the more contagious British and South African variants of the coronavirus continue to spread throughout the U.S. was expected to rattle markets. On Friday, Virginia health officials reported the state's first case of the strain first identified in South Africa.
On Sunday, South Africa halted distribution of AstraZeneca's vaccine after a new study found it offers "minimal protection" against mild disease caused by the variant first discovered there. Shares of AstraZeneca were flat Monday.
In the U.S., hopes of an agreement over a stimulus plan have also risen after the Senate and House each passed a budget resolution on Friday, starting the reconciliation process that would allow President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion rescue package to get through the Democratic-held Senate with a simple majority.
U.S. stocks climbed on Monday, building on a recent rally to record levels as investors remained optimistic about further Covid stimulus and an economic recovery.
Money Report
No major European earnings were out on Monday. On the data front, German industrial production figures showed output was unchanged in December, weaker than the 0.3% gain forecast by economists.
Shares of Dialog Semiconductor rose 16% Monday after Renesas Electronics Corp said it had agreed to buy the Frankfurt-listed chip designer for 4.9 billion euros ($5.90 billion) in cash.
Meanwhile, shares of water and waste management firm Veolia were down slightly Monday after a French court blocked any hostile takeover of its smaller rival Suez, whose shares were also lower.
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