European stocks rise on Friday and can complete the growth of the second week in a row; the investors assess the quarterly reporting and respond to the increase of oil prices, reported Bloomberg.
The composite index of the largest companies included in Stoxx Europe 600 rose during trading by 1.7%, to 331.97 points.
The index of 50 largest enterprises of the Eurozone’s Euro Stoxx 50 rose 2.1%, the British FTSE 100 rose 1.3%, the French CAC 40 increased by 2%, and German DAX rose 2.1%.
The focus of investors on Friday is aimed at the meeting of finance ministers and heads of G20 central banks, which takes place in Shanghai. The head of the US Treasury Jack Lew said that one should not expect dramatic statements about new stimulus measures from the meeting. Meanwhile, on Friday, the chairman of the Central Bank of China Governor Zhou Xiaochuan said that the central bank still maintains tools of monetary policy to support the market.
In addition, the situation with the oil quotations also supports the stock market. Brent price during the Friday trading session slightly changed after rising 2.6% the day before; WTI rises in price by 0.6% after jumping 2.9% on Thursday. Shares of Europe's largest oil companies Shell and BP (L: BP) are rising in price by 2%.
Even the price of the Italian Eni SpA, which reported a net loss of € 6.89 billion in the fourth quarter, rose now by 4.5%.
The cost of the shares of mining companies also increased, Glencore quotes (L: GLEN) and Rio Tinto (L: RIO) show growth of more than 4%.
The capitalization of the German chemical company BASF SE (DE: BASFN) increased by 2.9%. The company reported that it admits drops in profits in 2016 by 10%, but investors were pleased with news of increasing dividends.
The largest bank in Austria Erste Bank AG increased its market value by 3.5% after a strong earnings outlook for 2016.
Meanwhile, shares of Royal Bank of Scotland have fallen in price by 7%. The Bank reported its eighth consecutive annual loss amid significant write-downs in the fourth quarter and announced its intention to proceed with the payment of dividends in the 1st quarter of 2017, rather than in the second half of 2016, as previously thought.