Business News

LONDON, Oct 21, (APP/AFP) – European stocks firmed in Friday’s opening deals, with Frankfurt, London and Paris each adding 0.1 percent, buoyed by takeover activity in the tobacco sector. In initial trade, London’s benchmark FTSE 100 index gained ground to stand at 7,036.23 points compared with Thursday’s closing level. In the eurozone, Frankfurt’s DAX 30 rose to 10,710.51 and in Paris the CAC 40 increased to 4,546.65 points. London’s top gainer was British American Tobacco, whose share price rallied almost four percent after launching a $47-billion bid for control of US rival Reynolds American. The region’s equities had already climbed higher on Thursday after the European Central Bank (ECB) maintained the size and scope of its bond-buying stimulus programme.