A TV presenter gets ready for the daily reporting from the floor of the German share price index DAX at the stock exchange in Frankfurt, Germany, November 15, 2023.
Staff | Reuters
LONDON — European stocks climbed higher Friday after the latest U.S. jobs report soared past expectations.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 was up 0.4% by 3 p.m. London time, with most sectors and major bourses trading in the green.
Banks led gains, rising 2%, while oil and gas stocks added 1.5%, continuing their climb on supply concerns after U.S. President Joe Biden suggested Israel could target Iran’s oil industry as the Middle East conflict further escalates. On the other end, utilities fell around 1%.
Automaker shares climbed 1.98% after the European Union on Friday voted to adopt definitive tariffs on China-made battery electric vehicles (BEVs). It comes despite opposition to the measures from many European carmakers, who fear retaliatory tariffs from one of their biggest markets.
Elsewhere, Shares of Danish shipping giant Moller-Maersk fell more than 8% at one point before paring losses slightly after U.S. dockworkers and the United States Maritime Alliance agreed on Thursday to a tentative deal on wages, bringing to a close their three-day strike and easing pressures on the sector.
A prolonged strike would have provided a boost for European shippers to take a larger share of global supply chain demands. Maersk was last seen down around 5%, while Germany’s Hapag Lloyd lost 14.29%.
U.S. stocks rallied Friday after nonfarm payrolls data showed the U.S. economy added 254,000 jobs in September, ahead of the 150,000 estimated by economists polled by Dow Jones.