European shares gain as retail, healthcare sectors show positive trends
European shares climbed on Wednesday, with the STOXX 600 index rising 0.4%—hovering near a two-week high.
The gains came mainly from upbeat news in retail and healthcare, making it a good day for investors keeping an eye on these sectors.
Retail sector jumps on Inditex's upbeat autumn sales forecast
Zara's parent company, Inditex, saw its stock jump 6% after sharing that autumn sales are picking up speed—even though its last quarter wasn't stellar.
This positive outlook contributed to a 2.2% jump in the retail sector.
Novo Nordisk's workforce reduction boosts its stock
Novo Nordisk's shares rose nearly 2% after announcing it will cut about 11.5% of its workforce to save $1.26 billion each year and stay competitive in the weight-loss drug race.
Tech stocks rise on Oracle's cloud order forecast
Tech stocks like SAP and ASML also edged up around 1%, thanks to Oracle forecasting over $500 billion in cloud orders—a bold prediction that sent Oracle's Frankfurt-listed shares soaring by 30%.
The upbeat mood spread across the tech sector, adding to the market's overall momentum.