European stocks closed higher on Tuesday amid hopes that U.S. President Donald Trump will delay a decision on whether to impose tariffs on EU autos.
European markets
The pan-European Stoxx 600 was up by around 0.5%, with telecoms stocks leading gains. Iliad was the top driver in the sector, up 20% on the back of strong earnings and the unveiling of a new share buyback plan.
Market sentiment has been lifted slightly after reports that President Trump would announce a delay to EU auto tariffs by six months, potentially averting another damaging dispute with a major U.S. trading partner.
Investors continue to await direction on trade talks between Washington and Beijing after President Trump on Friday denied claims by the Chinese Commerce Ministry that the two sides had agreed to roll back existing tariffs on each other's goods.
The president is expected to speak about the country's trade policy on Tuesday at the Economic Club of New York, and traders will be closely monitoring his words for clues on developments with China.
On Wall Street, stocks rose with traders keenly awaiting Trump's speech on trade. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up nearly 50 points while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indexes were also in positive territory.
In corporate news, Hong Kong's securities regulator announced Monday that it has fined Swiss lender UBS $51.09 million for overcharging up to 5,000 clients for nearly a decade.
On the data front, official statistics released on Tuesday revealed that U.K. unemployment fell to 3.8% in September, but wage growth came in weaker than expected at 3.6%.
German investor mood improved more than expected in November, with a ZEW survey indicating that economic sentiment jumped from -22.8 in October to -2.1. Reuters polling had projected a reading of -13.0.
Stocks on the move
Looking at individual stocks, Infineon shares gained 6% after the firm reported reported a fourth-quarter post-tax profit of 161 million euros ($177.66 million), in line with expectations, Fellow chipmaker Dialog Semiconductor jumped nearly 7% after updating its long-term guidance.
Deutsche Post beat analyst expectations to post an almost three times increase in third-quarter operating profit before the bell, with earnings jumping to 942 million euros from 376 million a year ago. The company's shares climbed almost 4%.
At the other end of the European blue chip index, Electrocomponents saw its stock slide by around 11% after reporting a 4.3% fall in fiscal 2020 first-half pretax profit.