European Stocks Post Strong Gains As U.K. Unemployment Drops

(RTTNews) - European stocks rebounded Wednesday amid encouraging economic news from China and the U.K.

China's GDP gained 7.4 percent on year in the first quarter, the National Bureau of Statistics said. That topped expectations for 7.3 percent, following the 7.7 percent gain in the previous three months.

Data from the Office for National Statistics showed that the U.K. unemployment rate declined below the 7 percent threshold during the three months to February. The jobless rate was 6.9 percent of the labor force, down from 7.1 percent in September to November period.

The Euro Stoxx 50 index of eurozone bluechip stocks rose 1.35 percent.

The German DAX rose 1.5 percent and the CAC of France rose 1.3 percent. The UK's FTSE 100 picked up 0.7 percent Switzerland's SMI added 0.34 percent.

Reckitt Benckiser rose 2.4 percent. The consumer goods giant reported lower revenue for the first quarter, hurt by currency fluctuations.

Syngenta rose 2.4 percent in Zurich. The crop chemicals firm reported a modest growth in sales for the first quarter, despite a delayed start to the U.S. season.

GEA Group AG rallied 6.8 percent after agreeing to sell its heat-exchanges unit to Triton Advisers.

ASML is declining 3.3 percent after the chipmaker's second-quarter sales guidance disappointed investors.

Credit Suisse lost 1.5 percent. The lender reported a sharp decline in first-quarter profit.

Danone eased 0.4 percent after reporting first-quarter sales.

Tesco gained 2.3 percent after reporting growth in full year profit.

Eurozone annual inflation slowed as initially estimated to a 52-month low in March, while core inflation fell more than expected, final data from Eurostat showed. Inflation fell to 0.5 percent from 0.7 percent in February.