Europe open: Shares make bright start; Galp gushes on Namibia news

22nd Apr 2024 08:15

(Sharecast News) - European shares started the week in positive mood with the benchmark Stoxx 600 index pushing over the 500 mark at the open.

The index was up 0.54% to 501.97 in early deals with all major bourses higher. Britain's FTSE 100 gained 1.18% to 7989.

"The pulse of positivity comes in the absence of fresh retaliatory attacks by Israel or Iran and the US flexing its funding muscle and passing a crucial ($61bn) aid package for Ukraine," said Hargreaves Lansdown analyst Susannah Streeter.

"But some unease is set to continue about high valuations on Wall Street, following a string of falls last week. The focus is switching to earnings season kicking off, and tech giants have a lot to prove as concerns grow about the era of high interest rates continuing."

In equity news, Galp Energia surged 18% after the Portuguese firm said that the Mopane field off the coast of Namibia could have at least 10 billion barrels of oil.

'Lord of the Rings' video game maker Embracer was up 17% after the Swedish firm announced it was splitting into three standalone listed entities.

Alstom was up after the French train manufacturer agreed to sell its North American conventional rail signalling business to German rail systems manufacturer Knorr-Bremse for around €630m.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com