Newscasts - Europe Today: European shares rise as investors brace themselves for a data-packed week
12/08/2024 11:01
Click the following link to watch video: https://share.newscasts.refinitiv.com/link?entryId=1_50vcwhu6&referenceId=1_50vcwhu6&pageId=Newscasts Source: 'Reuters - Business videos' Description: Shares have opened the week on a positive note. Investors are readying themselves for key economic data not just from Europe but the U.S. as well. Short Link: https://refini.tv/3WL5EIP Video Transcript: European shares rise as investors brace themselves for a data-packed week. Welcome to Europe Today. I'm Ramzan Karmali. Well, let's get straight to the markets, and after last week's roller coaster, shares have opened the week on a positive note. Investors are readying themselves for key economic data not just from Europe, but the US as well. Employment data from the UK and Spain's inflation numbers will be on investors’ radar later in the week. Eurozone's flash employment, GDP, and inflation production numbers are set for release on Wednesday, and of course, US inflation data is also out on Wednesday. Shares of German reinsurer Hannover Re led financials higher after posting better-than-expected Q2 results. Oil prices are rising for a fifth consecutive session. They're holding on to last week's more than 3% gains as US recession fears eased, while geopolitical tensions in the Middle East supported prices. India's Bharti Enterprises said it will acquire a 24.5% stake in BT. It will do so by buying out the firm's top shareholder, Altice UK, the vehicle of telecom tycoon Patrick Drahi. Bharti said it had no intention of taking over the whole of the telecom company, which is Britain's biggest broadband and mobile company. BT shares soared to the top of the STOXX 600 on the open. British employers are expected to raise pay by 3% over the coming year, according to the CIPD. That's the lowest planned increase in two years and down from 4% just three months ago. Official wage growth data will be released on Tuesday and is expected to show some signs of easing too. But speaking to the FT, one Bank of England rate setter, Catherine Mann, warned that the wage growth was still a concern for inflation and could take years to dissipate. Sticking with earnings, and the bosses of Britain's biggest firms received record pay last year. In fact, nine firms offered packages worth over GBP10 million. According to the think tank, the High Pay Centre, median pay for a FTSE 100 company CEO rose 2.2% to GBP4.19 million, but it did point out that CEO pay growth had slowed compared with the previous two years. The highest paid British CEO was Pascal Soriot of drugmaker AstraZeneca. He earned GBP16.85 million. UK insurers paid out a record high GBP1.4 billion in claims during the second quarter. That was mainly down to weather-related catastrophes such as fires and flooding, according to the Association of British Insurers. The average price of home insurance in the country rose by 6%. The ABI also said that increased flooding in Britain from overflowing rivers and blocked drains is causing insurers to pull back from offering coverage. And that's it from Europe Today