BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - European stocks rose on Monday as encouraging earnings news from the likes of Julius Baer and Philips coupled with renewed hopes for more U.S. stimulus outweighed worries about fresh restrictions across the continent due to rising Covid-19 numbers.
Italy announced new measures after the country recorded a record daily increase of the Covid-19 cases for the fifth day in a row on October 18.
Elsewhere, Britain's government scientific adviser Jeremy Farrar said the country needs to impose a three-week period of national lockdown restrictions to prevent the continued spread of the virus.
The pan European Stoxx 600 rose 0.6 percent to 369.58 after climbing 1.3 percent on Friday. The German DAX edged up 0.3 percent, France's CAC 40 index gained 0.8 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 was up 0.1 percent.
Julius Baer shares surged 5.4 percent. The Swiss wealth manager reported an improvement in profitability for the first nine months of 2020.
Philips gained nearly 3 percent. After posting better-than-expected third-quarter net profit, the Dutch medical-technology group said it is targeting accelerated sales growth and higher profitability in the 2021-2025 period.
Swedish defense company Saab plunged nearly 12 percent after reporting a fall in third-quarter profit.
Volkswagen was moving higher. Traton SE, a subsidiary of the German automaker, has reached an agreement in principle to buy remainder of Navistar International Corp. stock it does not already own for $44.50 per share.
Steel producer Salzgitter fell over 1 percent after it appointed Gunnar Groebler as its chief executive officer, effective July 1, 2021.
Danone advanced 1.4 percent. The world's largest yoghurt maker reinstated its forecasts for 2020 and said it's planning to sell assets.
French carmaker Renault declined 1.6 percent on news that it would unveil an eight-year turnaround plan next year to cope up with a demand slump exacerbated by the coronavirus crisis.
John Laing Group rose over 1 percent. The British infrastructure investor has agreed to sell its portfolio of Australian wind farm assets to First Sentier Investors for a total consideration of approximately 157 million pounds.
Online fashion group Boohoo plunged 11 percent after its auditor PwC confirmed it was resigning amid reputational concerns.
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