BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - French stocks rose on Wednesday as comments from Apple's chief that U.S.-China trade tensions were easing helped to reduce investor anxiety about a China slowdown.
Strong earnings results from LVMH also buoyed sentiment as investors await the outcome of a Federal Reserve meeting and another round of U.S.-China trade talks.
The benchmark CAC 40 index was up 27 points or 0.55 percent at 4,955 in opening deals after climbing 0.8 percent on Tuesday.
Luxury conglomerate LVMH jumped nearly 7 percent after it announced record sales and profits for 2018. Gucci owner Kering rallied 3.5 percent.
IT consulting firm Atos soared 8.2 percent. The company plans to distribute 23.4 percent of shares in its subsidiary Worldline to shareholders.
In economic releases, France's economic growth remained steady in the fourth quarter of 2018, supported by foreign trade, while domestic demand slowed, preliminary data from the statistical office INSEE showed.
Gross domestic product grew 0.3 percent quarter-on-quarter, same as in the third quarter. Economists had forecast 0.2 percent expansion.
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