June 16 -- German stocks rose for a third day as gains at MAN SE and BASF SE overshadowed a report that showed U.S. builders broke ground on fewer homes than anticipated.
MAN advanced 1.4 percent as rival Volvo AB reported a surge in truck deliveries. BASF rose with European chemicals shares. Celesio AG rose 4.3 percent after the biggest publicly traded drug wholesaler in Europe said it s forming a joint venture with Phoenix Group in the Netherlands to distribute Pharmaceuticals. Daimler AG and Bayerische Motoren Werke AG both declined more than 2 percent.
The DAX Index gained 0.3 percent to 6,190.91, closing at the highest level since May 13. The benchmark gauge has rallied 9.2 percent since May 25 after concern about the impact of Europe s sovereign debt crisis pushed the measure near its cheapest level relative to earnings in more than a year. The broader HDAX Index advanced 0.2 percent to 3,129.09 today.
Housing starts fell 10 percent, the biggest decline since March 2009, to a 593,000 annual rate, from a revised 659,000 pace in April that was less than previously estimated, Commerce Department figures showed today in Washington. Building permits, a sign of future construction, unexpectedly fell to a one-year low. Single-family starts suffered the largest drop since 1991.
Industrial Production
A separate report from the Federal Reserve showed industrial production in the U.S. rose in May by the most since August, led by increases in automobiles and utilities and showing manufacturers are weathering the effects of the European debt crisis.
European inflation accelerated to the fastest pace in more than a year in May as surging energy costs and a weaker euro made imported goods more expensive across the 16-nation region, the European Union statistics office in Luxembourg said today.
MAN SE, Europe s third-largest truckmaker, rose 1.4 percent to 68.36 euros after Sweden s Volvo, the world s second-largest truckmaker, reported a 44 percent rise in truck deliveries to 13,577 vehicles in May.
BASF, the world s biggest chemicals maker, climbed 0.4 percent to 46.33 euros, an eighth straight advance for the longest winning streak in almost 11 months. Chemicals shares gained as much as 0.7 percent today, among the best performers in the Stoxx Europe 600 Index.
Celesio, Sixt
Celesio rose 4.3 percent to 18.89 euros. The stock gained after the company said it s forming a joint venture with Phoenix Group in the Netherlands to distribute pharmaceuticals.
Celesio said it will contribute 62 drugstores with annual sales totaling 170 million euros ($209 million) to Brocacef Holding NV, a Phoenix subsidiary. Celesio will own 45 percent of Brocacef, a drug wholesaler and pharmacy operator, the company said.
Sixt AG climbed 4.1 percent to 16.65 euros, erasing yesterday s 1.2 percent loss. The company aims to return to pre- crisis earnings levels next year, Handelsblatt reported, citing an interview with Chief Executive Officer Erich Sixt. The German car-hire company expects to earn more in 2010 than in 2009, according to the newspaper report.
Daimler tumbled 2.8 percent to 41.14 euros, sliding for the fourth day, while BMW, the world s largest luxury-car maker, fell 2.1 percent to 39.03 euros.
Daimler and BMW were among auto companies who benefited over the past few weeks from a stronger dollar, said Daniel Schwarz, an analyst at Commerzbank AG in Frankfurt. With the euro gaining in the past few days, some investors may be taking some profits.
MAN advanced 1.4 percent as rival Volvo AB reported a surge in truck deliveries. BASF rose with European chemicals shares. Celesio AG rose 4.3 percent after the biggest publicly traded drug wholesaler in Europe said it s forming a joint venture with Phoenix Group in the Netherlands to distribute Pharmaceuticals. Daimler AG and Bayerische Motoren Werke AG both declined more than 2 percent.
The DAX Index gained 0.3 percent to 6,190.91, closing at the highest level since May 13. The benchmark gauge has rallied 9.2 percent since May 25 after concern about the impact of Europe s sovereign debt crisis pushed the measure near its cheapest level relative to earnings in more than a year. The broader HDAX Index advanced 0.2 percent to 3,129.09 today.
Housing starts fell 10 percent, the biggest decline since March 2009, to a 593,000 annual rate, from a revised 659,000 pace in April that was less than previously estimated, Commerce Department figures showed today in Washington. Building permits, a sign of future construction, unexpectedly fell to a one-year low. Single-family starts suffered the largest drop since 1991.
Industrial Production
A separate report from the Federal Reserve showed industrial production in the U.S. rose in May by the most since August, led by increases in automobiles and utilities and showing manufacturers are weathering the effects of the European debt crisis.
European inflation accelerated to the fastest pace in more than a year in May as surging energy costs and a weaker euro made imported goods more expensive across the 16-nation region, the European Union statistics office in Luxembourg said today.
MAN SE, Europe s third-largest truckmaker, rose 1.4 percent to 68.36 euros after Sweden s Volvo, the world s second-largest truckmaker, reported a 44 percent rise in truck deliveries to 13,577 vehicles in May.
BASF, the world s biggest chemicals maker, climbed 0.4 percent to 46.33 euros, an eighth straight advance for the longest winning streak in almost 11 months. Chemicals shares gained as much as 0.7 percent today, among the best performers in the Stoxx Europe 600 Index.
Celesio, Sixt
Celesio rose 4.3 percent to 18.89 euros. The stock gained after the company said it s forming a joint venture with Phoenix Group in the Netherlands to distribute pharmaceuticals.
Celesio said it will contribute 62 drugstores with annual sales totaling 170 million euros ($209 million) to Brocacef Holding NV, a Phoenix subsidiary. Celesio will own 45 percent of Brocacef, a drug wholesaler and pharmacy operator, the company said.
Sixt AG climbed 4.1 percent to 16.65 euros, erasing yesterday s 1.2 percent loss. The company aims to return to pre- crisis earnings levels next year, Handelsblatt reported, citing an interview with Chief Executive Officer Erich Sixt. The German car-hire company expects to earn more in 2010 than in 2009, according to the newspaper report.
Daimler tumbled 2.8 percent to 41.14 euros, sliding for the fourth day, while BMW, the world s largest luxury-car maker, fell 2.1 percent to 39.03 euros.
Daimler and BMW were among auto companies who benefited over the past few weeks from a stronger dollar, said Daniel Schwarz, an analyst at Commerzbank AG in Frankfurt. With the euro gaining in the past few days, some investors may be taking some profits.
