European Stocks to Watch: Gazprom
Shares in Russian gas giant Gazprom rose as Deputy Chief Executive Alexander Medvedev announced Sunday the company was near to closing an unspecified deal to grow its market presence in Britain.
"In the near future there will a deal to further increase the customer base on the British market," Medvedev told reporters at an economic forum in St Petersburg, Reuters reported.
The move may be opposed by some British politicians however, as the Russian market is not equally open to acquisitions from U.K. firms, Reuters said.
Greene King (Up 2.2%) The British pub and brewery company announced a share buyback, with 250,000 of its ordinary shares having been taken off the market at an average price of 1020.88 pence (2011.13 cents) per share.
Royal Dutch Shell (Down 0.6%) Europe's largest oil company is keen to join in with developing Russia's Shtokman field, if invited to do so, however a senior official at Gazprom said that was unlikely to happen.
EADS (Up 1.8%) Jean-Paul Gut, the chief operating officer at the European aeronautics and defense giant, is stepping down due to a disagreement over strategy.
Workspace (Down 6.7%) Shares in the newly-converted real estate investment trust (REIT) slumped as it posted a 24% decline in full-year pretax profit, despite reporting a 43% surge in its net asset value.
