European stocks posted tepid early gains Monday as merger news and a bullish session in Asia boosted sentiment even as investors maintained a cautious tone with the U.S. dollar as the political upheaval surrounding U.S. President Donald Trump shows no signs of abating.
The region-wide Stoxx Europe 600 index, the broadest measure of share prices, was marked little changed from its Friday close at 391.17 points in the opening hour of trading while Britain's FTSE 100 lead gainers with an early 0.36% advance.
Benchmarks in Germany and France, however, were also largely flat from their Friday closing prices after the opening hour of trading as investors remained in a broadly cautious mood despite renewed M&A vigour.
A $20 billion deal in the European chemicals space provided broader support for the sector, and lifted shares in Clariant AG (CLZNY) to an all-time higher after it said it would combine with U.S.-based Huntsman Corp. (HUN) in an all-stock deal that will be worth $20 billion.
HuntsmanClariant will have sales of around $13.2 billion, the companies said, based on pro-forma 2016 sales and adjusted operating profit of $2.3 billion. The deal is expected to close before the end of the year, the companies said in a statement.
Clariant shares leaped more than 9.3% in Zurich to change hands at €22.78 each, an all-time high, giving it a market cap of around €7.5 billion ($8.37 billion).
Overnight in Asia, the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index, the regional benchmark, was marked 0.86% while Japan's Nikkei 225 ended the session with a 0.45% advance to 19,678.28 points, even with the dollar's weakness pushing the yen higher in overnight trading.
