European Shares Open Higher Buoyed by Oil Sector

European shares kicked off the week on a positive note, buoyed by the global oil sector amid fears of a widening conflict in the Middle East and as a raft of upbeat earnings updates also lifted the overall market sentiment. The pan-European STOXX 600 index was up 0.4 percent on Monday, after the benchmark posted marginal gains last week. Oil and gas stocks gained 1.3 percent, the most among regional sectors, as crude prices inched higher following a rocket strike in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Among individual stocks, Philips soared 8.6 percent after the Dutch medical devices maker reported an estimate-beating quarterly results, boosted by higher earnings and the implementation of its restructuring program. Shares of Germany's Merck were up 3.6 percent after the company raised its forecast for the group, mainly driven by a strong operating performance at its healthcare and electronics units. Shares of Reckitt Benckiser slumped 9.2 percent as close to 1,000 lawsuits have been filed against Abbott Laboratories and the Enfamil formula maker. Source: Qatar News Agency