EUROPE MARKETS: European Stocks Log Small Gain Even As Oil Stocks Slump

Adidas shares rise after an upgrade

European stocks ended a choppy session in moderately positive territory on Wednesday, with shares of Adidas AG pushing higher after a broker upgrade, but energy companies slumping on the back of a renewed selloff in oil prices.

The Stoxx Europe 600 index ended 0.2% higher at 382.99, after swinging between small gains and losses throughout the day.

Equities had trouble finding their footing after falling on Tuesday for the fifth time in six sessions, with risk appetite dented after North Korea said it successfully test-launched an intercontinental ballistic missile. (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/north-korea-claims-successful-test-firing-of-an-icbm-2017-07-04)

The geopolitical worries continued Wednesday, as in response, the White House denounced North Korea and demanded global action (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-calls-for-action-after-north-korea-successfully-launches-long-range-missile-2017-07-05), while U.S. troops carried out joint exercises with its ally South Korea. U.S. equity trading was closed Tuesday for the (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/north-korea-claims-successful-test-firing-of-an-icbm-2017-07-04)Independence Day holiday.

Traditional haven trades, such as gold and the yen, were higher Wednesday. Gold rose 0.3% to $1,222.50 an ounce, while the yen rose against the greenback. The U.S. dollar bought Yen113.17, down from Yen113.28 late Tuesday.

Stock movers: Sports apparel maker Adidas AG (ADS.XE) sprang up 4.9% after a ratings upgrade to buy from hold at HSBC.

Auto makers were under pressure after U.K. car registrations dropped 4.8% in June (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/uk-car-registrations-fall-for-3rd-straight-month-2017-07-05), according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders. In Frankfurt, shares of BMW AG (BMW.XE) and Daimler AG (DAI.XE) lost 0.9% and 0.6%, respectively.

Drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline PLC (GSK.LN) moved 0.2% lower following a downgrade to neutral from buy at Citigroup. Fellow pharma Novartis AG (NOVN.EB) fell 0.3% after it was downgraded to underperform from neutral at Credit Suisse.

Oil blues:Shares in oil producers BP PLC (BP.LN) (BP.LN) and Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDSB.LN) (RDSB.LN) each fell 1.3% as oil prices slid (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/crude-oil-sinks-after-russia-rules-out-further-production-cuts-2017-07-05). Repsol SA (REPYY) dropped 1.7% and Statoil ASA (STL.OS) lost 2.4%.

Crude was down more than 3% after Russia ruled out any proposals to deepen the OPEC-led production cuts.

Individual indexes: Germany's DAX 30 index rose 0.1% to 12,453.68, while France's CAC 40 rose 0.1% to 5,180.10. The FTSE 100 index picked up 0.1% to 7,367.60.

Economic docket: eurozone economic growth likely accelerated over the second quarter, with the average purchasing managers index at its highest for more than six years, according to data released by IHS Markit.

That's despite a month-on-month drop in the eurozone composite PMI for June (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/eurozone-economy-expands-in-second-quarter-2017-07-05), which came in at 56.3, compared with 56.8 for May. It was still higher than the 55.7 flash estimate.

German services activity growth eased to five-month low in June, with IHS Markit saying its PMI came in at 54.0, compared with 55.4 in May.

The euro bought $1.1342, little changed from $1.1347 late Monday in New York.

Later Wednesday, minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve's most recent meeting will be released. The central bank has largely signaled that it's still track to raise interest rates again this year.

Read:Central banks have set investors up for a long, hard road back to 'normal' (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/investors-face-a-long-hard-road-back-to-normal-2017-06-29)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 05, 2017 11:56 ET (15:56 GMT)