(Reuters) – European shares hit record highs on Friday, with luxury stocks flying high on the back of strong earnings from Cartier-owner Richemont.
The pan-European STOXX 600 was up 0.1% as of 0828 GMT, hitting a new peak in early trading.
Richemont surged 7.8% after beating profit estimates in the first half of the fiscal year and saying it is seeking investors for its loss-making Yoox business, in a move widely expected to appease shareholders.
Personal and household stocks led gains as luxury firm LVMH jumped 1.5% after news that Louis Vuitton was planning to open its first duty-free store in China.
Oil stocks fell 0.5% as crude prices were dented by a firmer U.S. dollar owing to market bets of an earlier-than-expected Federal Reserve rate hike. [O/R]
Deutsche Telekom climbed 2.1% after beating profit expectations and raising its full-year outlook for the third time, boosted by growing subscribers in its U.S. unit T-Mobile.
Italian infrastructure firm Atlantia rose 1.2% after raising its 2021 forecast, while Dutch oil and chemical storage group Vopak also advanced 0.3% after beating estimates for quarterly profit.
(Reporting by Anisha Sircar in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D’Silva)
