LONDON — European markets rose on Tuesday, paring losses from the previous session.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 was up 0.1% by 2pm London (9am ET). The index hit a new high of 588.42 points in the first few hours of trading, days after surpassing its all-time high.
The benchmark is up 14% this year and looks set to begin its third consecutive year of gains with one week left.
Investors will focus on Novo Nordisk stock after Wegovy maker receives FDA approval for the first-ever GLP-1 pill, giving the Danish company a head start against its U.S. rival Eli Lilly. Novo Nordisk’s stock price has recently increased by 9.2%.
European medical giant Zealand Pharma also saw its shares rise 3.4% in afternoon trading. The Stoxx600 healthcare index rose 1.4%.
Shares in French biotech company Avivax continued to rise for a second day, rising 3.8%. The company has been one of Europe’s best-performing stocks this year, jumping 15.4% on Monday.
Danish renewable energy giant Orsted fell 13% on Monday after the U.S. Department of the Interior announced it would suspend leases on five offshore wind projects already under construction. Mr. Orsted successfully challenged the Trump administration’s suspension of the Revolution Wind project off the coast of Rhode Island, which was nearing completion, earlier this year. The company’s stock price was down 0.5% in afternoon trading.
Greenland Prime Minister Jens Frederik Nielsen has dismissed President Donald Trump’s appointment of a “special envoy” to the Danish territory. President Trump has repeatedly made pleas to acquire Greenland, which is particularly attractive for its rare earth deposits.
gold and silver Futures prices also hit new highs on Tuesday following Monday. They were last traded at $4,518 and $70.67 per ounce, respectively. Metals have soared this year, setting consecutive price records as risk assets lose ground.
Spain’s final GDP data was released on Tuesday, confirming preliminary data released last month that showed year-on-year growth of 2.8% in the third quarter.
Asia-Pacific markets opened mostly higher on Tuesday after AI trading lifted Wall Street’s major indexes overnight. In the United States, stock futures traded mostly flat on Monday night after a strong start to the shortened trading week.
—CNBC’s Elsa Ohlen and Lim Hui Jie contributed to this report.
