Europe Stocks Little Changed as Miners Fall, Oil Shares Advance

(Bloomberg) -- European equities opened little changed as earnings releases continued and traders mulled positive signals on the U.S.-China trade talks.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index was steady at the open. Shell climbed 0.7 percent and BP added 0.6 percent as Brent advanced for the fifth day. Rio Tinto declined 1.3 percent and BHP fell 1.6 percent after being cut at JPMorgan.

European stock investors continue to watch comments from Washington on the trade negotiations after U.S. President Donald Trump told CBS trade talks with Beijing are “doing very well.” The Stoxx Europe 600 gauge had its strongest monthly gain in January since 2015, boding well for the year ahead, although traders still remember last year’s February sell-off that became a starting point in the return of market volatility amid growth concerns.

“We expect the second half to be more challenging, so we have been adding high-quality and low-volatility names. We’re leaving one of the longest U.S. growth cycles and concerns about growth will come by year-end,” said Roland Kaloyan, the head of European equity strategy at Societe Generale SA.

“The relative quietness in financial markets this morning suggests investors are on the sidelines waiting for new relevant newsflow to inspire,” said Chris Bailey, a European strategist at Raymond James in London. “Fortunately, there is a lot of corporate reporting this week, not to mention the State of the Union address and a Bank
of England meeting.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Ksenia Galouchko in London at kgalouchko1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Blaise Robinson at brobinson58@bloomberg.net

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