European shares lifted by banking stocks, Rubis shines

(For a Reuters live blog on U.S., UK and European stock markets, click or type LIVE/ in a news window) Sept 15, Reuters - European shares rose in early trading on Monday, lifted by bank stocks as investors geared up for a pivotal week of central bank meetings, including the U.S. Federal Reserve's, while Rubis shot up after a report on the potential sale of the French company.

The pan-European STOXX 600 rose 0.2% to 556.2 points, as of 0711 GMT, with rate-sensitive banks leading sectors with a 0.8% gain. A report of bids for Rubis from CVC Capital Partners and Trafigura lifted the fuel retailer's shares 6.7% to the top of the STOXX 600 index. The French company is valued at about $3.5 billion.

Meanwhile, ratings agency Fitch downgraded France's sovereign credit rating as expected on Friday, complicating newly installed Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu's job as he begins talks to draft a budget. The CAC 40 index climbed 0.4%, with shares in domestic banks such as SocGen up 1.3%, while BNP Paribas and Credit Agricole added about 0.9% each.

Focus later this week will squarely be on the Fed's interest rate verdict. Global market sentiment has been buoyant on expectations that the Fed Reserve will respond to signs of domestic labour market weakness with at least a 25-basis-points cut after its meet this week - potentially its first dovish monetary policy move this year.

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