European Stocks Advance Amid Optimism on Earnings, Growth.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-09-25/european-stock-index-futures-little-changed-before-draghi.html

European stocks rose for a second day amid optimism that the euro’s weakness against the dollar will boost profits at the region’s companies and the strength of the U.S. economy will drive global growth. U.S. index futures were little changed, while Asian shares outside Japan fell.

The benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 Index climbed 0.4 percent to 345.75 at 9:56 a.m. in London after European Central Bank President Mario Draghi told a Lithuanian newspaper that the euro-area economic recovery seems to have lost its momentum. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures slipped 0.1 percent, while the MSCI AC Asia Pacific Excluding Japan Index lost 0.6 percent.

“The strong dollar is very good news for European equities,” Pierre Mouton, who helps oversee about $8 billion at Notz, Stucki & Cie. in Geneva, said in a phone interview. “This helps the competitiveness of European companies on a global scale thanks to a cheaper euro and secondly it will translate into better earnings for export-oriented companies. Yesterday’s home sales in the U.S. were sharply up which is very good news for the health of the U.S. economy which is very important as it is the real driver of the world economy.”

Currency Devaluation

The euro, the shared currency of 18 European countries, tumbled to its lowest level since November 2012 against the dollar, falling for a third day. The shared currency of 18 European countries has dropped 8.7 percent since a high in May.

The ECB is unanimous on the use of unconventional monetary policy to revive growth in the euro area, Draghi told the region’s central bankers at a conference in Vilnius, Lithuania. In an interview to Verslo Zinios before the event, he said heightened political tensions and inadequate policy changes are risks to the economic recovery.

In the U.S., data this week showed new-home sales surged in August to the highest level in more than six years and manufacturing continued to expand in September. Reports today may show first-time applications for jobless benefits rose last week, while durable-goods orders slumped last month, according to economists surveyed by Bloomberg News.