Oil stocks support the European STOXX 600 index to record highs

European shares hit another record high on Monday as Royal Dutch Shell led energy shares higher after it said it would end the dual-share system, while some upbeat Chinese data also boosted sentiment.

The continent-wide STOXX 600 rose 0.1% to an all-time high, although profits fell 1.1% as metals prices tumbled on the back of China’s pledge to take coal at the top of COP26. Data earlier in the day showed that retail sales and industrial production growth beat expectations last month in the world’s second-largest economy, sparking optimism from global investors.

The STOXX 600 hit a string of record highs this month as solid corporate earnings and dismal central bank decisions boosted investor confidence, distracting attention from the resurgence of COVID-19 in the region. “The increases we are seeing are driven by an expected increase in spending ahead of the Christmas festivities, with continued improvement in business likely to improve the outlook for European markets,” said Kunal Sawhney, CEO of Calkin Group.

“Any major disruption to business due to COVID-19, frequent closures, store closures and business difficulties are likely to delay the sudden rise in the indicators by several months.” The Austrian government on Sunday became the first European country to restore the new lockdown, placing restrictions on millions of unvaccinated people amid record infection rates.

France’s excellent CAC 40 index reached a record 2.1 percent, thanks to an increase from Airbus. The European aircraft maker has received a multi-billion dollar order for 255 single-aisle A321neo passenger jets from private equity firm Indigo Partners’ airline group. Royal Dutch Shell added 2% after it said it would streamline its operations and move its headquarters from the Netherlands to the UK. The stock was the best performing among oil stocks, rising 0.4%.

Meanwhile, Spain’s BBVA was the biggest drag on Spain’s IBEX, losing 3.7% of its bid to buy the rest of Garanti BBVA for €2.25 billion ($2.6 billion). Shares of Philips, which is calling on fans to use parts containing potentially dangerous foam, fell 10.9% after the company said it was in talks with US regulators following a new investigation into one of its facilities.

(This story has not been edited by the Devdiscourse staff and is automatically generated from a shared feed.)