Israel’s Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepts rockets, as seen in Ashkelon, Israel, on October 1, 2024.
Amir Cohen Reuters
LONDON – European stocks opened higher on Wednesday as investors tried to look past the escalating tensions in the Middle East and awaited fresh employment data from outside the region.
It is pan-European The Stoxx 600 rose 0.17% in opening trade, with most sectors and major debt still in the green. Oil and gas stocks added 1.54% on hopes of supply disruptions in the Middle East, while travel and leisure stocks fell 0.55%.
It follows a rough start to the trading month on Wall Street, in which the Nasdaq Composite shed 1.5% and the S&P 500 lost 0.9%, after Iran launched a missile attack on Israel in retaliation for its recent assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and Iranian commander in Lebanon.
The attack came after Israel sent ground troops into southern Lebanon, intensifying its offensive against Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed militant group.
Oil prices rose following the attack, and the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX), also known as Wall Street’s gauge, rose 20 points during its period.
US futures remained lower in overnight trade, while Asia-Pacific markets were mixed.
Markets in Mainland China were closed on Wednesday for the Golden Week holiday and will remain closed for the rest of the week. However, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index traded more than 6% higher, showing more optimism about Beijing’s stimulus policies.
Back in Europe, investors are awaiting new unemployment data from the region and UK house price data. British sports retailer JD Sports and report income.
— CNBC’s Dan Mangan contributed to this report.