The broader banking index was steady on the day and rose 4.5% this week, partly supported by the UK budget, which spared the sector from tax rises.“They expected something like a possible levy on banks to be introduced in the UK budget, but nothing came of that, which was good news for that sector,” said Michael Field, chief equity strategist at Morningstar.
The sector was also the best performer this month, rising more than 4%, its fifth consecutive monthly increase, as investors shifted amid valuation concerns that led to a global technology sell-off this month.
The Spanish benchmark index, which is heavily skewed towards banks, rose by more than 2% in November. The basic commodities sector led with a 1.2% gain on Friday, driven by copper prices hitting a record high. The sector was the best performer this week, with an increase of 5.7%. Investors mostly refrained from making big bets ahead of the weekend as Friday’s US market session was shortened due to a holiday.
Renewed concerns about a possible AI bubble sparked a global sell-off in early November, but investor sentiment improved on rising expectations that the Fed will cut US interest rates in December following dovish comments from policymakers and weaker economic data.
Next week, investors expect some attention to the peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. Under pressure from Washington, Kiev has expressed support for a US-drafted framework but said key issues need to be resolved, while Moscow insists Ukraine surrenders strategic eastern territory.
While hopes for progress provided some support to overall sentiment in Europe, they weighed on the region’s aerospace and defense stocks, with the sector down more than 8% this month and underperforming all its peers.
“What they (investors) have become skittish about over the past month is whether there will be a peace deal in Ukraine,” Morningstar’s Field said.
Among individual stocks, Delivery Hero rose 14.6% after a report showed investors were pushing management to consider a sale of all or part of the company.
Italian luxury group Ferragamo gained as much as 2.3% after JP Morgan upgraded the stock to ‘neutral’, citing improved brand momentum.
Hotel operator Whitbread fell 11.4% after saying British budget measures would cost the company 40 million to 50 million pounds ($66 million) in the next fiscal year, as a sharp rise in business rates threatened to undermine margins.
Global futures markets reopened after CME Group suffered one of the longest outages in years, halting trading in stocks, bonds, commodities and currencies.
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