The European markets finished in positive territory Monday, rebounding from the weakness of the previous three trading sessions. U.S. lawmakers have made optimistic statements that a deal on the budget deficit and avoid the looming fiscal cliff could be reached. Investors had been fearful that the U.S. would fall back into recession if a deal is not reached to avoid the fiscal cliff. There are also reports that a tentative approval of the next tranche of aid to Greece is likely to be approved tomorrow, when European finance ministers meet.
After the European markets had closed on Friday, bipartisan group of U.S. Congressional leaders made statements regarding the progress of the first day of negotiations to find a solution to the fiscal cliff. Republicans announced that revenues are now on the table, as long as they are accompanied by spending cuts. The leaders announced that they are not going to wait until the last minute to come to a solution.
Over the weekend, President Obama stated that he is confident "we can get our fiscal situation dealt with."
Eurozone finance ministers are heading for another round of talks on Greece in Brussels on Tuesday, seeking a plan to bridge a financing gap created by a two-year extension of Greece's bailout program, while settling a dispute with the International Monetary Fund on the same.
The finance ministers of the 17 euro area nations, known as the Eurogroup, will also discuss how to restore Greek debt sustainability by 2020, as this is crucial in restoring investor's faith in the single currency.The Eurozone should decide next week on financing Greece for 2013 and 2014, European Central Bank policymaker Joerg Asmussen told German broadcaster ZDF.
"But you have to be honest and say we do not really expect the country to have access to markets in 2015 and 2016," he said Sunday. "That means a follow-up programme would be necessary."
The Euro Stoxx 50 index of eurozone bluechip stocks increased by 2.84 percent, while the Stoxx Europe 50 index, which includes some major U.K. companies, added 2.28 percent.
The DAX of Germany climbed by 1.14 percent and the CAC 40 of France gained 1.69 percent. The FTSE 100 of the U.K. advanced by 1.06 percent and the SMI of Switzerland rose by 0.98 percent.
In Frankfurt, Daimler increased by 1.98 percent. The luxury carmaker said it plans to expand its management board to include a member solely responsible for the company's troublesome Chinese car business.
In Paris, Societe Generale advanced by 5.52 percent. Credit Agricole rose by 5.20 percent and BNP Paribas increased by 4.65 percent.
In London, BP climbed by 1.46 percent. The oil giant said it intends to spend up to 3.7 billion pounds buying back its shares in an attempt to revive its flagging share price and prevent in time potential takeover attempts.
Barclays rose by 4.39 percent, after Goldman Sachs upgraded the stock to "Buy" from "Neutral."
HSBC increased by 2.83 percent. The company is reportedly involved in talks to sell its $9.3 billion stake in China's Ping An Insurance.
Lloyds Banking Group fell by 1.21 percent. The company agreed to sell a portfolio of Irish commercial real estate loans for £149 million in cash.
Royal Bank of Scotland climbed by 1.84 percent and Standard Chartered gained 0.94 percent.
Eurozone's construction production decreased in September after recording growth in the previous two months, preliminary data released by statistical office Eurostat showed Monday. Construction output decreased a seasonally adjusted 1.4 percent month-on-month in September, reversing the 0.6 percent rise seen in August. In July, production had increased by 0.3 percent.
A leading indicator of the French economy increased for the third consecutive month in September, data from a survey by the Conference Board showed Monday. The leading economic index increased to 114.9 in September from 114.2 in August. In July, the reading was 113.5.
Signs of recovery are emerging in the British property market with house prices posting the least severe November fall in three years along with some positive developments in other indicators, a survey by Rightmove revealed Monday.
Average asking price for a property in the UK fell 2.6 percent month-on-month in November to GBP 236,761. This was the weakest November fall since 2009. In October, house prices were up 3.5 percent.
Prices were up 2 percent year-on-year, the highest annual rate of increase seen in November since 2007. Excluding London, where prices continued to show an upward trend, the overall house price index still rose 0.2 percent on an annual basis.
Existing home sales in the U.S. unexpectedly increased in the month of October, according to a report released by the National Association of Realtors on Monday, with sales rebounding after falling in the previous month.
NAR said existing home sales rose 2.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.79 million in October from a downwardly revised 4.69 million in September. Economists had expected existing home sales to fall to 4.70 million from the 4.75 million originally reported for the previous month.
Homebuilder confidence in the U.S. has seen a substantial improvement in the month of November, the National Association of Home Builders revealed in a report on Monday, with the homebuilder confidence index jumping to a new six-year high.
The report showed that the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index surged up to 46 in November from 41 in October. Economists had expected the index to a show a more modest increase to a reading of 42.
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Market Analysis
May 15, 2026 15:25 ET Apart from the confirmation of Kevin Warsh as the next Fed chair, the main news on the economics front this week included key price data from the U.S. and the first quarter economic growth figures from major economies. Both consumer prices and producer costs have started to reflect the effect of supply shocks due to the Middle East conflict. In Europe, GDP data was in focus, while inflation data from China dominated the news flow in Asia.