The European markets are firmly in positive territory in afternoon trading Friday, following firm cues from Asia/Pacific, after some positive news emerged from the two-day summit of European Union leaders underway in Brussels.
The leaders have agreed to make use of Eurozone's bailout funds to recapitalize the region's banks directly once an effective single supervisory mechanism is established, relieving the governments of the burden of bailing out troubled lenders. The European Commission will present proposals for a single supervisory mechanism soon.
EU President Herman Van Rompuy said the leaders have approved a 120 billion-euro package to promote growth in the debt-stricken eurozone as well as across the broader 27-nation European Union. The leaders also discussed ways to reduce the high borrowing costs faced by Spain and Italy.
The Euro Stoxx 50 index of eurozone bluechip stocks is climbing 2.90 percent, while the Stoxx Europe 50 index, which includes some major U.K. companies, is falling 1.53 percent.
The German DAX is climbing 2.65 percent and the French CAC 40 is rising 2.83 percent. The UK's FTSE 100 is adding 1.49 percent and Switzerland's SMI is advancing 1.07 percent.
In Frankfurt, Deutsche Boerse is climbing 4.8 percent. JPMorgan raised the stock to "Overweight" from "Neutral."
Deutsche Bank is advancing 4 percent and Commerzbank is climbing 2 percent.
Daimler, BMW and Volkswagen are adding between 3.4 percent and 2 percent. UBS raised BMW to "Buy" from "Neutral."
Citigroup raised Deutsche Post to "Buy" from "Neutral." The stock is up 2.5 percent.
Adidas is the lone decliner, by losing 2.1 percent, after peer Nike reported lower profit.
In Paris, BNP Paribas, Credit Agricole and Societe Generale are gaining between 5.2 percent and 3.9 percent. Insurer Axa is gaining 3.9 percent.
Alstom and Cap Gemini are gaining 4.4 percent each. Schneider Electric is rising 3.9 percent.
Vivendi is up 2.2 percent after Chief Executive Officer Jean-Bernard Lévy resigned Thursday, following strategy differences with the Supervisory Board. JPMorgan and Nomura upgraded the stock.
Peugeot and Renault are gaining 2.4 percent and 2.2 percent, respectively.
Cairn Energy said it is selling 3.5 percent stake in Cairn India. The stock is gaining 1.8 percent.
Berkeley is gaining 3.4 percent. The residential property developer reported a sharp increase in profit for the year.
Barclays is losing 2.5 percent as concerns remained about the Libor manipulation. Royal Bank of Scotland is losing 0.3 percent after reports that the lender too may be fined for a similar offense.
Melrose is sliding 1 percent. German engineering firm Elster agreed to be acquired by the buy-out specialist for $2.3 billion.
Swiss pharmaceutical firm Actelion said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved its supplemental new drug application for second generation Veletri, for pulmonary arterial hypertension treatment, to improve exercise capacity. The stock is up 2.1 percent in Zurich.
Credit Suisse said it expects the second quarter to be profitable at the Group level and in all its divisions. The stock is gaining 4 percent.
Belgian brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev has reached an agreement to acquire the remaining stake in Mexican peer Grupo Modelo S.A.B. de C.V. for about $20.1 billion. AB Inbev shares are up 1.5 percent.
In Madrid, Banco Bilbao is gaining 5 percent and Banco Santander is adding 4.2 percent. Unicredit is surging 6.4 percent in Milan.
In economic news, retail sales in Germany decreased for a second consecutive month in May, the latest figures from the Federal Statistical Office showed. Sales fell 0.3 percent month-on-month in real terms in May, following a 0.2 percent decline in the previous month.
Eurozone annual inflation remained unchanged at 2.4 percent in June, flash estimate issued by Eurostat showed. The outcome was in line with economists' expectations.
Across Asia/Pacific, major markets closed firmly in positive territory. Australia's All Ordinaries added 1.2 percent, China's Shanghai Composite Index gained 1.4 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng climbed 2.2 percent. Japan's Nikkei 225 advanced 1.5 percent.
In the U.S., futures point to a firm start on Wall Street. In the previous session, major markets closed lower, amid concerns about Europe and a negative reaction to the Supreme Court's decision to uphold President Obama's healthcare reform law, including the law's individual insurance mandate. The Nasdaq ended down 0.9 percent, while the Dow and the S&P 500 edged down 0.2 percent each.
In the commodity space, crude for August delivery is adding $2.86 to $80.55 per barrel and August gold is climbing $33.7 at $1584.1 a troy ounce.
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