European stocks gained for the first time in five days as an advance by automakers and energy companies outweighed a retreat in retailers. U.S. index futures advanced while Asian shares were little changed.

PSA Peugeot Citroen climbed 2.2 percent as La Lettre de L’Expansion reported that France’s biggest carmaker has lifted its sales target for the DS3 model. Premier Oil Plc surged 8.2 percent after the explorer said a North Sea well encountered oil-bearing sandstones.
Hennes & Mauritz AB fell 2 percent after Chief Executive Officer Karl-Johan Persson told La Tribune that Europe’s second-largest clothing retailer isn’t for sale.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose 0.7 percent to 250.15 at 11:27 A.M. in London, having swung between gains and losses at least six times.
The gauge fell 2.8 percent last week as disappointing U.S. housing data and a surge in the cost to protect from a Greek default reignited concern about the global recovery. The index is trading at 15 times reported earnings, near the lowest level since 2008, according to Bloomberg data.
“The market has declined a lot and valuations reflect a lot of the uncertainty,” said Charles Dautresme, a strategist at Axa Investment Management in Paris, which oversees about $626 billion. “In the long term, we’ll come out winning. We shouldn’t be too negative.”
Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rose 0.3 percent today, while the MSCI Asia Pacific Index declined less than 0.1 percent.
Global efforts to tighten banking oversight have gained momentum, U.S. President Barack Obama said following the Group of 20 meeting this weekend. Group leaders yesterday agreed to pursue higher capital requirements for banks once their economic recoveries take root. The leaders endorsed targets to cut deficits at least by half by 2013 and stabilize their debt-to- output ratios by 2016. Central banks and governments should consider withdrawing extraordinary measures to avoid skewing investment decisions and delaying companies’ recording of losses, the Bank for International Settlements said.
“The time has come to ask when and how these powerful measures can be phased out,” the Basel, Switzerland-based BIS said in its annual report published yesterday. “The cumulating side effects themselves pose a danger that, at the very least, implies exiting sooner than may be comfortable for many.”
Consumer spending in the U.S. was probably little changed in May for a second month as Americans used wage gains to rebuild savings, economists said before a report due at 08:30 A.M. in Washington. Purchases rose 0.1 percent, according to the median forecast of 58 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. Reports on payrolls and home sales are expected later this week.
“U.S. economic statistics are an important condition for investors before coming back to the market,” said Axa’s Dautresme. “We need to see good employment and housing data.”
Peugeot rose 2.2 percent to 22.17 euros, leading a gauge of auto shares to a 2.1 percent gain. The carmaker has lifted its 2010 sales target for the DS3 model to 70,000 from 45,000, La Lettre de L’Expansion reported, without citing anyone.
(Source: Bloomberg)