European markets up as BHP helps extend rally

Eurostoxx 50: 2,910.93 (–3.83) Frankfurt DAX: 6,934.44 (–4.19) Paris CAC: 3,987.80 (+10.85)EUROPEAN STOCKS rose for a fifth day yesterday, erasing losses for the Stoxx Europe 600 Index in the final hour of trade, as a rally in mining shares offset concern that banks will need to sell more shares to increase their capital.

The Stoxx 600 benchmark gained 0.1 per cent to 276.51 at the close in London.

The gauge has clawed back 5.5 per cent since this year’s low on March 16th as investors speculated that Japan will prevent further radiation leaks from its earthquake damaged nuclear plant.

“There are still plenty of worries, but the market seems to be taking it in stride,” said Lawrence Peterman, investment director at Eden Financial.

Investors seem to be “looking at potential earnings and valuations that are not particularly expensive”, he said.

BHP paced a rally in mining shares as base metals increased on the London Metal Exchange.

The world’s largest mining company gained 2.2 per cent to 2,414.5p.

Vedanta Resources jumped 2.9 per cent to 2,238p, and Rio Tinto climbed 2 per cent to 4,366p.

UBI slumped 12 per cent to €6.03 as the lender proposed to sell as much as €1 billion ($1.4 billion) of shares prompting analysts from Nomura Holdings to Société Générale and Intermonte SIM to downgrade the stock.

Banco Popolare, Italy’s third-biggest bank, sank 6.9 per cent to €2.10 after Goldman Sachs cut its price estimate to €2.75 from €2.90.

Commerzbank, Germany’s second-largest lender, slid 4.3 per cent to €5.52.

BP fell 2.2 per cent to 466.6p.

Nordex lost 4.5 per cent to €8.94 after the company said it sold about 6.7 million shares at €8.40 apiece.

Hugo Boss climbed 5.8 per cent to €57.86 after the company forecast that currency-adjusted sales will rise at least 12 per cent following “a successful start to 2011”.

Groupe Eurotunnel, which operates the undersea rail link between England and France, increased 4.2 per cent to €7.49.

Babcock International rose 3.8 per cent to 600p as the company said trading for the full year is “consistent” with its expectations. – (Bloomberg)