European stocks soared Wednesday as hopes that a Brexit trade deal can finally be reached spurred investors and France relaxed its UK travel ban.
The first benefits came despite President Donald Trump threatening to derail the US coronavirus aid package.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 SXXP,
was up 0.4% in early trading and continued the recovery from Monday’s sell-off as Germany’s DAX DAX,
rose 0.8% and the French CAC PX1,
climbed 0.7%.
US Equity Futures YM00,
ES00,
NQ00,
be higher for the outstanding, recovering from past losses after Trump threatened to quash Congress’s coronavirus relief package. Trump criticized the bill, which earns most Americans a check for $ 600, in a video posted on Twitter. He called on Congress to change the bill and “raise the ridiculously low $ 600 to $ 2,000, or $ 4,000 for a pair,” suggesting he may not sign it.
In Europe, renewed optimism about a Brexit trade deal helped stocks, as EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier said both sides were “making a final push” towards an agreement, and some reports suggest it could come on Wednesday. The positive indications helped the British pound GBPUSD,
to rise 0.5% to $ 1.3424, but sent the internationally exposed FTSE 100 UKX,
0.1% lower. The spread of the new variant in the UK and fears of the economic impact of tighter restrictions also kept the index under pressure.
However, there was some encouragement when France reopened its border with the UK after thousands of trucks were trapped in Dover following a ban to prevent the new species from entering Europe. Drivers are now allowed to enter France by tunnel or ferry if they provide a negative test for the virus. The military is called in to help conduct tests on stranded drivers.
Vaccines again took center stage in the light of the new COVID-19 strain, which has been found in a growing number of countries, including Italy, South Africa and Australia. BioNTech BNTX,
CEO Uğur Şahin said more tests were needed to see if the company’s vaccine, developed in partnership with Pfizer PFE,
would protect against the new strain. He added that he was sure it would.
The US government is about to strike a deal to obtain tens of millions of additional doses of Pfizer’s vaccine, The Associated Press reported.
Daimler’s stock rose 2.8% based on reports that the luxury carmaker is planning a stock exchange listing of its truck division. It could be launched in late 2021, Handelsblatt reported, citing sources from the company.