By Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- European stock markets rose at the open
on Friday following a volatile trading week, after concerns eased
overnight that the U.S. Federal Reserve will soon taper its bond
purchases.
The Stoxx Europe 600 index climbed 0.3% to 291.43, on track to
break a four-day losing streak.
Shares of Renault SA put on 2.1% after Citigroup added the car
maker to its focus list.
Shares of Glencore Xstrata PLC gained 1.9% after the mining and
commodities trading firm signed a $17.3 billion revolving credit
deal, which replaces the previous revolving credit facilities of
both Glencore and Xstrata.
The broader European stock markets welcomed signals from the
U.S., that the Fed is unlikely to make any changes to its easing
program at the coming policy-setting meeting next week. A report in
The Wall Street Journal said that Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke is
likely to reiterate that the central bank expects a considerable
amount of time to pass between ending the bond-buying program and
raising short-term rates.
Stock markets globally rallied to multiyear highs in May,
boosted by aggressive easing measures from central banks. However,
comments from Bernanke that the Fed could start tapering QE in
coming months if data continue to improve sparked a selloff at the
end of the month.
Among notable movers on Friday, shares of Hochtief AG jumped 7%
after the construction-services firm said late Thursday it will buy
back up to 4.3 million of its own shares up to a price of 260
million euros ($346.9 million).
Shares of Yara International PLC gained 2.8% in Oslo after the
fertilizer firm said it is postponing a planned expansion of a
plant in Belle Plaine, Canada.
For the major country-specific indexes, Germany's DAX 30 index
picked up 0.5% to 292.00, while France's CAC 40 index rose 0.5% to
3,816.71. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index added 0.5% to 6,335.61.
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