European equities advanced for a third consecutive session on Tuesday, with the Stoxx 600 index climbing 0.8% to 638.41 points by 0727 GMT and approaching its highest level in nearly a week.
Danish biotech firm Genmab drove the gains, surging 7.6% to lead the benchmark after a late-stage study showed its blood cancer drug combination with AbbVie reduced the risk of disease progression or death. The broader healthcare sector followed with a 1.6% advance.
Investors are now awaiting euro zone retail sales figures and the UK S&P Global PMI survey scheduled for release later in the day. Those data points could offer fresh signals on consumer spending across the region and the pace of British economic activity.
The euro remained under pressure near a 17-month low after Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called a snap election on Monday, adding political uncertainty to the currency’s outlook. Meanwhile, the French government’s push to pass an unpopular 2027 budget aimed at narrowing the deficit has triggered a selloff in sovereign bonds.
Euro zone bond yields retreated on Tuesday after touching multi-decade highs last week, offering some relief to fixed-income markets that had been rattled by fiscal and inflation worries.
Elsewhere, Italy’s Technoprobe rose 2.3% after JPMorgan initiated coverage of the semiconductor testing company with an overweight rating.
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