BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - European markets ended higher on Tuesday, as easing fears about U.S. recession after bond yields recovered from 15-month lows, a rebound in crude oil prices and fresh optimism about upcoming U.S.-China trade negotiations outweighed concerns about Brexit.
The pan European Stoxx 600 ended up 0.77%. Among the major markets in Europe, Germany and France ended notably higher, with their benchmarks DAX and CAC 40 gaining 0.64% and 0.89%, respectively. The U.K.'s FTSE ended up 0.26% and Switzerland's SMI climbed up 0.9%.
Among other markets in Europe, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland and Russia closed on a firm note. Finland, Portugal, Spain and Sweden edged up marginally. Turkey ended sharply lower and Czech Republic declined marginally.
Buying was broad-based in most of the markets in Europe. Media stocks were among the notable gainers.
Shares of Wirecard skyrocketed 26% on reports the company, which was facing allegations that its accounting staff in its Singapore office carried out fraudulent transactions, has been cleared of criminal wrongdoing.
Among other gainers in the German market, Fresenius ended 3.5% up. SAP gained 2.35%. Deutsche Bank, Beiersdorf, Vonovia, Covestro and Henkel gained 1 to 2%.
Shares of French company Airbus gained after saying that it has signed a deal to sell 300 passenger jets to Chinese airlines.
Capgemini ended more than 3% up. Dassault Systemes, Atos, Essilor, Technip, Unibail Rodamco, Louis Vuitton, L'Oreal, Kering, Vinci and Vivendi also ended with strong gains.
In the UK market, Old Mutual, Fresnillo, Associated British Foods, Hikma Pharma, Next, Anglo American, Burberry Group, DCC, Experian and Mediclinic International rose sharply.
Shares of cruise-ship operator Carnival tumbled more than 8% after the company lowered its fiscal 2019 earnings guidance due to fuel costs and currency headwinds.
Ferguson ended 7.1% down after the company warned over slowing growth and said full-year profits will be at the lower end of market forecasts. The company said is now expects organic sales to grow by between 3% and 5% over the second half, down from 6.5% reported for the first half.
EasyJet, CRH and IAG declined 2 to 2.7%.
On the Brexit front, the British lawmakers on Monday voted to wrest control of the Brexit process from the government.
MPs will now vote on a range of Brexit options on Wednesday in order to give meaningful direction ahead.
In economic news from Europe, Germany's consumer confidence is set to slightly weaken in April, driven by some easing in households' income expectations and the propensity to buy, survey results from the GfK showed on Tuesday.
The forward-looking consumer confidence index fell to 10.4 from a revised 10.7 in March, the Nuremberg-based market research group said. Economists had expected the reading to remain unchanged at March's original 10.8.
The economic expectations index of the survey rose seven points to reach 11.2 in March. That was the first increase after five consecutive months of decline.
The income expectations index fell 4.1 points to reach 55.9 in March and the propensity to buy index decreased 3.4 points to 50.2, which was the lowest reading in over two years.
According to survey data from the statistical officee INSEE, France's manufacturing confidence weakened slightly in March, after remaining stable in the previous two months.
The factory confidence indicator fell to 102 from 103 seen in each of the previous three months. In November, the index reading was 105.
The overall business climate indicator, however, rose to 104 from 103 in February.
The confidence indicator rose eight points from January in the wholesale trade, which has a bimonthly survey.
The overall employment climate indicator improved to 108 from 107, mainly due to stronger hiring expectations in the services sector.
U.S. stocks opened on a firm note and were holding gains midway through the session, despite weak housing starts and building permits data. The market also shrugged off a report showing a drop in consumer confidence in March.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX