European bourses bounce back after torrid selloff over previous days

European stocks bounced back on Wednesday after their worst selloff this year as optimism about a strong earnings season countered worries about a rapid rise in Covid-19 cases in some countries.

Wall Street's main indexes rose after falling for two straight sessions, as gains in mega-cap stocks more than offset declines in Netflix following disappointing results.

DUBLIN

The Iseq index rose by 0.25 per cent. The Dermot Desmond-backed travel software company Datalex was among the strongest performers, finishing the session ahead by 4.5 per cent at €0.46. It is poised to benefit from any nascent return to international travel over the summer months.

Irish banks continued to tick into positive territory as investors digest the news that rivals such as KBC and Ulster Bank will depart the market. AIB was ahead by more than 1.3 per cent to €2.29, while Bank of Ireland rose almost 0.6 per cent to €4.26 per share.

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LONDON

The FTSE 100 rose, led by gains in AstraZeneca and energy heavyweights BP and Royal Dutch Shell.

Drugmaker AstraZeneca gained 1.7 per cent and was the top boost to the FTSE 100 after India's Serum Institute said it would sell the AstraZeneca vaccine to private hospitals at $8 (€6.66) a dose.

British house prices rose at the fastest annual rate in more than six years in February, data showed, pushing construction and material stocks up 0.8 per cent.

Just Eat Takeaway. com fell 2.7 per cent after a media report about rival Uber Eats' plan to start a food delivery service in Germany, one of Just Eats' most lucrative markets.

Entain gained 2.2 per cent after BetMGM, a US joint venture with MGM Resorts, said it was targeting net revenue of $1 billion in 2022.

EUROPE

The pan-European Stoxx 600 index rose 0.7 per cent after a blistering seven-week rally ran into a bout of profit-taking on Tuesday, when it fell 1.9 per cent.

Healthcare stocks gave the Stoxx 600 its biggest boost, with Swiss drugmaker Roche jumping 3 per cent after predicting a surge in demand for its drugs for the remainder of 2021.

Dutch-listed semiconductor equipment maker ASML jumped 4.1 per cent to lift tech stocks after it raised its full-year sales forecast, citing strong demand amid a global computer chip shortage.

German fashion house Hugo Boss jumped 6.7 per cent to a one-year high, with traders citing a media report of takeover interest in the company, including from French luxury goods maker LVMH.

The world's second largest brewer Heineken and French luxury goods group Kering were among other stocks to rally after upbeat results.

Among decliners, Italian football club Juventus slumped 13.7 per cent after breakaway European Super League founder and Juventus chairman Andrea Agnelli said the league can no longer go ahead after six English clubs withdrew.

NEW YORK

Tesla and Microsoft were the biggest boosts on the S&P 500 index by early afternoon trading, while streaming service provider Netflix tumbled 7.3 per cent.

Nine of the 11 major S&P 500 sectors were higher, with communication services, which houses Netflix, and the defensive utilities sectors falling. The S&P 500 technology sector gained 0.6 per cent.

Anthem rose 0.3 per cent after the health insurer raised its full-year profit target as lower demand for non-Covid-19 healthcare services helped it rein in medical costs and beat quarterly profit estimates.

Shares of bigger rival UnitedHealth Group gained 0.2 per cent, helping support the Dow Jones index.

Verizon Communications dropped 0.4 per cent after it lost more wireless subscribers than expected in the first quarter. Shares of T-Mobile US and AT&T were also lower.

US railroad operator CSX fell 4.6 per cent after it missed estimates for first-quarter profit, hurt by frigid polar vortex temperatures, ongoing pandemic disruptions and higher fuel costs. – (Additional reporting: Reuters)