European stocks rise; Tesla earnings boost global sentiment

Investing.com - European stock markets mostly rose Wednesday, largely maintaining the recent positive tone as the quarterly earnings season continues in full swing.

At 03:40 ET (08:40 GMT), the DAX index in Germany traded 0.2% higher, the FTSE 100 in the U.K. climbed 0.3%, while the CAC 40 in France traded 0.1% lower.

U.S. tech bounce boosts global sentiment 

European equities have benefited from the positive tone generated globally from an extended rebound in the U.S. technology sector, emphasised by strong gains from electric vehicle giant Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) after Tuesday’s close.

Tesla stock jumped in premarket trading even as the carmaker flagged accelerated plans to develop cheaper EV models, a key element in its elevated valuation, overshadowing disappointing earnings.

There are more earnings from the U.S. Big Tech sector to digest Wednesday, with Facebook-parent Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) due later, followed on Thursday by Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) and Google-parent Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL).

European earnings continue 

Back in Europe, there are also corporate results to digest.

Volvo (OTC:VLVLY) Car (ST:VOLCARb) stock fell over 7% after the Swedish automaker's operating earnings missed forecasts due to lower revenues and losses at its Polestar business, although the company predicted igood demand for its vehicles this year.

Orange (EPA:ORAN) stock fell 2% after the French telecommunications giant reported slower first-quarter revenue growth than expected after sales in its European unit, the company’s biggest business group outside of France, declined.

Roche (SIX:RO) stock rose 1.7% after the Swiss pharmaceutical company reported a modest uptick in first-quarter sales, even as waning demand for its Covid-19 products continued to weigh.

Sales were up 2% at constant exchange rates, led by stronger demand for Roche’s newer medicines and diagnostics, the company said, while, excluding Covid-19 products, sales were up 7%.

German Ifo to show improvement 

The main economic data release in Europe Wednesday will be Germany’s Ifo Institute’s survey on business conditions and expectations for April.

This is expected to show a small improvement in sentiment in Europe’s largest economy, although this is unlikely to stop the European Central Bank from cutting interest rates in June, as recently flagged by a number of ECB officials, including President Christine Lagarde.

Crude gains on U.S. stockpiles drop

Oil prices edged higher Wednesday, boosted by industry data showing a surprise drop in U.S. inventories, while the tensions in the MIddle East remain in focus.

By 02:05 ET, the U.S. crude futures traded 0.3% higher at $83.58 a barrel, while the Brent contract climbed 0.3% to $88.67 a barrel. 

U.S. crude inventories fell just over 3 million barrels in the week ended April 19, according to data from the American Petroleum Institute, released on Tuesday. A build of around 800,000 barrels had been expected.

Official data on crude stockpiles from the Energy Information Administration are due later Wednesday for confirmation.

Traders will also focus on the latest developments in the Middle East, with Israel heavily shelling parts of Gaza on Tuesday, though the impact on oil supplies remains limited for now.

Additionally, gold futures rose 0.2% to $2,338.65/oz, while EUR/USD traded 0.1% lower at 1.0694.