London--London's stock market rose on Wednesday as the heavyweight energy sector won a lift from news that Royal Dutch Shell has agreed to a huge takeover of BG Group.
Eurozone indices were steady as traders awaited an update on the outlook for US interest rates and looked ahead to the latest action by Greece over its massive debt pile.
London's benchmark FTSE 100 index was up 0.12 percent to 6,970.05 points in mid-afternoon trade.
The CAC 40 in Paris slipped 0.09 percent to 5,146.73 points and Frankfurt's DAX 30 index was off 0.43 percent to 12,071.01 points compared with Tuesday's close.
US stocks opened higher Wednesday following news of the Shell-BG merger worth the equivalent of $70 billion or 64 billion euros as the market awaited the kickoff of earnings season.
Five minutes into trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was at 17,924.79, up 0.28 percent, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.33 percent to 4,926.56.
"The Shell and BG mega-merger adds 50 points to the FTSE, pulling it into positive territory regardless of the negative sentiment surrounding the European equity markets," said Alastair McCaig, market analyst at IG trading group.
"Today's proposed acquisition would create the largest company in the FTSE and the second largest oil and gas company in the world behind Exxon."
Shares in BG Group soared 31.76 percent to 1,199.50 pence, while Royal Dutch Shell 'B' shares were down 7.09 percent to 2,052.00 pence, with some analysts saying the offer price may turn out to be too large.
Within the sector, Tullow Oil jumped more than nine percent, BP gained 1.88 percent, while French energy giant Total was down a whisper, 0.01 percent, to 47.59 euros in Paris.
"The deal between Royal Dutch Shell and BG Group will prompt sector consolidation," noted Marc Kimsey, senior trader at Accendo Markets.
AFP
