European Factors to Watch-Shares seen opening higher, focus on energy

(ADVISORY- Reuters plans to replace intra-day European and UK
stock market reports with a Live Markets blog on Eikon - see cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?pageId=livemarkets
for site in development. See the bottom of the report)
LONDON, April 6 (Reuters) - European equities were expected
to gain in early trading on Wednesday after steep declines in
the previous session, with a bounce back in crude oil prices
seen supporting energy stocks.
Crude oil futures jumped as hopes for an agreement among
exporters to freeze output underpinned the market, although a
persistent global oversupply and Iran's plans to boost
production pressured physical oil prices.
Futures for the Euro STOXX 50 STXEc1 , Germany's DAX
FDXc1 , France's CAC FCEc1 and Britain's FTSE FFIc1 were
0.1 to 0.4 percent higher.
European shares fell on Tuesday to touch their lowest level
in almost six weeks, with mining, autos and banking stocks
leading the decline after industrial orders in Germany
unexpectedly dropped. The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3
index fell 1.9 percent to its lowest level since Feb. 25.
Mining shares will also be in focus after activity in the
service sector of China, the world's biggest metals consumer,
strengthened in March, but employment fell for the first time in
over 2.5 years, sending mixed signals.
In signs of improvement on the macroeconomic front, German
industrial output fell less than expected in February after
jumping in January, in a sign that the sector is likely to give
Europe's largest economy a modest push in the first quarter of
2016. NEWS
DAIMLER DAIGn.DE
The company said it expected its business to improve later
in the year, after the introduction of its new E-Class model,
strong demand for compact and locally made cars in China and
weak truck markets weighed on earnings in the first quarter.
ID:nF9N16O010

HENNES & MAURITZ HMb.ST
Swedish fashion retailer Hennes & Mauritz posted a fiscal
first-quarter pretax profit which was down almost as much as the
market expected, while preliminary March sales grew 2 percent in
local currencies.
Miner and commodity trader Glencore GLEN.L is in advanced
talks to sell a stake in its agricultural business to Canada
Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), the Wall Street Journal
reported, citing people familiar with the matter. DAIGn.DE
Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported that environmental lobby group
DUH has filed for an injunction against Daimler with a court in
Stuttgart, claiming the carmaker provided customers with
misleading information on emissions.

HEIDELBERGCEMENT HEIG.DE
The cement firm announces a plan to integrate Italcementi
which it said would affect around 400 of the company's 2,500
jobs in Italy by 2020. AIR.PA
Recent glitches in the production of engine gearboxes for
the A400M military transport aircraft will take several weeks or
several months to resolve, the head of one of the engine
consortium companies said on Tuesday. FRANCE KLM AIRF.PA
The chief executive of Air France-KLM, Alexandre de Juniac,
is stepping down to run the airline industry's main trade group,
the International Air Transport Association, it was announced on
Tuesday. RENA.PA
Renault will apply measures to reduce the nitrogen oxide
(NOx) emissions of its diesel-engined vehicles from July, the
French carmaker said in a statement on Tuesday. EDF.PA
French state-controlled utility EDF will not delay its
project to build nuclear reactors in Britain and its Chinese
partner China General Nuclear (CGN) will share any risks related
to it, EDF's Chief Executive Officer told French parliament on
Tuesday. ALVG.DE MUVGn.DE HNRGn.DE TLXGn.DE
China's Anbang Insurance Group said it was buying Allianz
Life Insurance Korea and Allianz Global Investors Korea,
confirming an earlier report that said Anbang had agreed to buy
Allianz's South Korean life insurance unit for about 250 billion
won ($216.6 million). SIEGn.DE
Siemens does not rule out acquisitions in its Building
Technologies business, the unit's chief Matthias Rebellius told
Handelsblatt in an interview. "But the question is how you can
use size to generate added value for customers," he said.

VOLKSWAGEN VOWG_p.DE
A court has dismissed a lawsuit that sought to blame Porsche
AG for the crash that killed actor Paul Walker, Sky News
reported. AIRG.DE , MTU AERO ENGINES MTXGn.DE
Recent glitches in the production of engine gearboxes for
the A400M military transport aircraft will take several weeks or
several months to resolve, the head of one of the engine
consortium companies said on Tuesday. STEEL
The British government opened talks on Tuesday with
potential buyers for Tata Steel's UK operations, including
Sanjeev Gupta's commodities company Liberty Group, as it stepped
up its battle to find a buyer for the loss-making business.

Barclays BARC.L has become the first big British bank to
form a partnership with a digital currency firm, social payments
app Circle, which runs partly on bitcoin's blockchain network
and launched in the UK on Wednesday. UHR.S
The Swiss watchmaker said executives are retiring, including
Stephen Urquhart as president of Omega, and Hanspeter Rentsch,
who is exiting his post on the executive management board after
40 years with the company. Additionally, Daniela
Aeschlimann-Schneider has been proposed for the watchmaker's
board of directors. For more click UHR.S

BARRY CALLEBAUT BARN.S
The Swiss chocolate maker said net profit fell 18.5 percent
to 107.9 million Swiss francs ($112.72 million), roughly in line
with a Reuters poll that had forecast an 18.2 percent decline.
The company confirmed its midterm targets. ADVISORY- Reuters plans to replace intra-day European and UK
stock market reports with a Live Markets blog on Eikon (see cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?pageId=livemarkets
for site in development). In a real-time, multimedia format
from 0600 London time through the 1630 closing bell, it will
include the best of our market reporting, Stocks Buzz service,
Eikon graphics, Reuters pictures, eye-catching research and
market zeitgeist. Breaking news and dramatic market moves will
continue to be alerted to all clients and we will continue to
provide a short opening story and comprehensive closing reports.
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please email mike.dolan@thomsonreuters.com.
Mike Dolan, Markets Editor EMEA.