European stocks rose at the close today, Tuesday, with the rise of Swiss stocks, thanks to Novartis Pharmaceutical Company raising its profit expectations, but a sharp decline in Swedish (Tele2) shares pushed the telecom sector index to its lowest level in six months.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 index closed up 0.6% after falling on Monday amid weak economic data from China, which affected the European luxury goods sector.
Novartis shares jumped 4.6%, boosted by STOXX 600, after it raised its full-year profit forecast and outlined plans to spin off Sandoz’s drug production unit, whose royalties forfeited, in early October, according to Reuters.
The Swiss index rose 1.2%.
The European health care sector index also rose 1.2%, supported by the rise of the Swedish Orphan Biovitrum shares, which rose 3.4%, after the pharmaceutical company recorded good quarterly profits.
As for the telecommunications sector, it fell 0.9%, to its lowest level since late December, after (Tele2) shares plunged 10.6% to their lowest level in five years, following “mixed” results for the second quarter.
