INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
MILAN: European shares recovered on Monday with merger talk lifting the battered banking sector and helping offset lingering worries over a
slowdown in the global economy, while a crash of a Boeing 737 MAX hit shares in its French engine maker Safran.
The pan-European STOXX 600
index was up 0.3 per cent by 0831 GMT, having hit its lowest since February 21 on Friday, while Germany's DAX was up 0.4 per
cent.
London's export-heavy FTSE added 0.7 per cent, outperforming its euro-zone peers boosted by stronger oil prices
Sterling was also weaker amid uncertainty about the nation's exit from the European Union as Parliament prepared to vote on the
government's Brexit deal.
German lender Commerzbank was the biggest gainer on the STOXX 600, up 4.1 per cent, following fresh reports at
the weekend over a possible tie-up with Deutsche Bank , which also rose 2.1 per cent.
The management board of Deutsche has agreed to hold
talks with Commerzbank on the feasibility of a merger, a person with knowledge of the matter said on Saturday.
Merger hopes lifted Charter
Court Financial and OneSavings Bank up 6.6 per cent and 8.4 per cent respectively after the two UK challenger banks said they were in
advanced talks about a possible all-share tie-up.
Safran fell 1 per cent following Sunday's fatal crash of a Boeing 737 MAX 8 operated by
The 737 MAX 8 uses LEAP-1B engines made by a joint venture of General Electric Co and Safran SA.
Shares in Boeing rival Airbus edged up 0.4
per cent, while Frankfurt-listed Boeing shares were down 7.6 per cent.
Among the top fallers was Pandora, down 6.4 per cent with traders
citing a downgrade to sell from Carnegie.
