European stocks climbed as a rally in auto-industry shares and Aviva Plc outweighed declines in food makers after Unilever missed sales forecasts. Asian shares advanced and U.S. index futures were little changed.
Nokian Renkaat Oyj, the Nordic region’s largest tire maker, rallied 8.3 percent after posting better-than-estimated earnings. Aviva, the U.K.’s second-biggest insurer, surged 6.7 percent as first-half profit increased 21 percent. Unilever, the world’s second-largest maker of consumer goods, declined 3.6 percent. Barclays Plc slipped 2.8 percent after revenue at its investment banking operations declined.
The benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose 0.4 percent to 263.12 at 10:54 a.m. in London, having swung between gains and losses at least five times. The gauge has advanced 13 percent from this year’s low on May 25 as concern eased that Europe’s sovereign debt crisis may derail the economic recovery. More than 25 companies in the Stoxx 600 reported results today.
