* European stocks rise, led by banks, resources sectors
* Commerzbank, Deutsche Bank jump on merger talkconfirmation
* German stocks fall for first time in three days
* Germany's Leoni slumps after scrapping 2019 profit target (Updates prices to close)March 18 (Reuters) - European stocks rose for the fourthsession in a row on Monday as a flurry of dealmaking, includingmerger talks between Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank , spurred gains in the financial services sector.Shares in the two German lenders rose between 4 percent and7 percent, and boost banking stocks across the region, despitethe likelihood of fierce opposition from local unions as amerger could threaten as many as 30,000 jobs over the long term.Europe's banking sector rose more than 1 percent,with Italian lenders Banco BPM and UBI Banca gaining. That sent the pan-European STOXX 600 index's up 0.27 percent to a fresh five-month high."If this (deal) works out, people are going to be looking at... if this could be an example of what needs to be done tocreate further stability and less reliance on the central bank,"said Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at OANDA.Also caught in the merger wave was German insurer Allianz , which Bloomberg reported was exploring combining itsasset management business with DWS , mostly owned byDeutsche Bank. DWS shares jumped 9 percent to their highestsince May.European payments companies Worldline , Ingenico and Wirecard rose after U.S. fintech groupFidelity National Information Services agreed to buyWorldpay for about $35 billion. That deal adds to a bumper few months for acquisitions inthe fast-growing sector which analysts say may be far from over.London's FTSE 100 rose the most among euro-peerswith a near 1-percent gain at the start of a week in whichparliament is expected to vote for a third time on PrimeMinister's Theresa May's Brexit plan after ruling out anear-term no-deal exit.Mounting speculation the U.S. Federal Reserve will sounddecidedly dovish at its policy meeting this week was also aidingglobal stock markets.
The European Central Bank changed its own direction onpolicy this month, pushing out the timing of its firstpost-crisis rate hike until 2020 at the earliest and offeringbanks a new round of cheap loans to help revive the euro zoneeconomy.Basic and resources sector jumped 1.7 percent, afterVale , the world's top iron ore miner, announcedfurther output cuts, raising worries about tightening supply ofthe steelmaking ingredient and triggering a rally in Chinesefutures. However technology companies came under pressure as sharesof Apple suppliers such as Infineon , AMS and STMicroelectronics fell, tracking theirU.S. peers lower after Synaptics Inc said third-quarterearnings would come in at low end of forecast due to softness inChina. Infineon posted its worst day in over two months and wasamong the biggest losers on Germany's benchmark stock index , which fell 0.25 percent after three gaining sessionsdespite the surge in Deutsche Bank. Adidas dropped2.4 percent, although volumes were low.Leoni was the day's big loser, sinking almost 20percent to a near nine-year low after the German automotivecable and wiring system specialist abandoned its 2019 profittarget. The Italian bourse climbed almost a percent,closing at it highest in almost six months, after ratings agencyMoody's decided not to downgrade the country. A rare laggard among banks was Dutch lender ING Groep , whose shares fell 1 percent after Italy's centralbank identified "shortcomings" in its Anti-Money Laundering(AML) processes at its Italian unit. (Reporting by Sruthi Shankar, Agamoni Ghosh and Susan Mathew inBengaluru; editing by Josephine Mason and Ed Osmond)
8780; outside U.S. +91 80 6749 6328; Reuters Messaging:sruthi.shankar.reuters.com@reuters.net)) Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.