European Shares Rising on Optimism About US-China Agreement

Renewed optimism about a US-Chinese trade agreement and a less-than-expected decline in economic production in Germany led to the rise of European stocks on Tuesday, and stocks in Frankfurt recorded their highest level in a month.

The European Stoxx600 index rose 0.8% by 07:11 GMT, extending gains on the back of positive developments in efforts to treat Covid-19. Sentiment was boosted by the confirmation of senior trade officials from China and the United States of their commitment to the phase one trade agreement despite political differences between the two countries.

The German DAX index, which is affected by trade, rose 1% thanks to data showing that Europe’s largest economy contracted at a record rate of 9.7% in the second quarter, but slightly lower than previous estimates of a 10.1% decline.

On the equity side, technology group Aviva rose 3.2% after it announced an agreement to buy OSI Soft, a private company to produce computer programs for industrial purposes.