European markets climb amid renewed hopes for Ukraine-Russia talks – CNBC

LONDON — European stocks moved higher on Monday ahead of further talks between Russian and Ukrainian negotiators.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 added 0.7% in early trade, with autos jumping 3.7% to lead gains while basic resources fell 1.8%.

Global attention remains on the war in Ukraine after a weekend of intensified fighting around capital Kyiv, while Russian forces bombarded cities across the country, killing civilians who are unable to escape. Russia also attacked a Ukrainian military training center near the Polish border on Sunday, killing 35 people and wounding 134.

Sanctions continue to hit Russia hard with the financial fallout for Moscow’s invasion expected to come into sharper focus in the coming days ahead of a scheduled sovereign bond payment.

Talks are taking place again on Monday in a bid to establish a solid ceasefire and find room for any compromise between Russia and Ukraine’s demands, although previous discussions have ended in failure.

The U.S. Federal Reserve is also in focus this week as it is expected to raise its target fed funds rate by a quarter percentage point from zero at the end of its two-day meeting Wednesday.

Investors are also looking to the central bank for its new forecasts for rates, inflation and the economy, given the uncertainty from escalated geopolitical tensions.

U.S. stock futures rose in overnight trading while shares in Asia-Pacific were mixed in Monday trade as investors monitored a Covid wave in China. 

German energy company Uniper was the strongest performer in the Stoxx 600 in early trade, gaining more than 8%, while Dutch investment company Prosus fell more than 7% to the bottom of the index.

— CNBC’s Yun Li contributed to this market report.