European shares up, led by financials, health stocks; Aveva gains on Schneider deal

European shares crept higher on Tuesday, brushing off geopolitical tension as attention turned to deal-making after Aveva’s tie-up with Schneider Electric. Financials and health stocks underpinned broader gains.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index rose 0.2 percent, recovering after a three-day winning streak ended Monday, following North Korea’s sixth and most powerful nuclear test on Sunday. Euro zone blue chips .STOXX50E gained 0.3 percent.

Britain’s FTSE 100 .FTSE index was up 0.3 percent and Germany’s DAX .GDAXI rose 0.4 percent.

Financials were the biggest contributors to gains, recovering after the risk-off start to the week. Basic resources .SXPP was the top-gaining sector.

Health stocks also helped underpin the rise, led higher by Germany’s Merck KGAA, which said that it was considering selling its consumer health business.

British mid caps .FTMC jumped 0.4 percent after shares in British engineering software firm Aveva rocketed more than 24 percent.

Aveva agreed to combine with Schneider Electric’s (SCHN.PA) software business, creating a London-listed software firm worth more than three billion pounds. Shares in Schneider Electric advanced one percent.

German drugs packaging firm Gerresheimer was among the biggest fallers, extending losses to trade 3.6 percent lower after Deutsche Bank downgraded the stock to hold from buy on the back of a difficult market environment. Source: Reuters