Europe’s STOXX 600 opens higher as travel and leisure sector shines

Europe‘s STOXX 600 index edged higher on Monday as travel and leisure stocks led sectoral gains, with this week’s key U.S. inflation prints and a slew of economic data from the euro zone set to test the benchmark index’s record-breaking run.

The pan-European STOXX 600 was up 0.1%, as of 0715 GMT. The benchmark index scaled to a record high on Friday and logged its biggest weekly gain of 3% since late January, underpinned by a strong set of corporate earnings.

All eyes will be on the U.S. producer and consumer prices inflation, due on Tuesday and Wednesday, and the euro zone’s final inflation and flash first-quarter GDP in the latter half of the week for the global monetary policy outlook.

Travel and leisure was the top sectoral gainer, while construction and materials sub-index was the worst hit.

Shares of shipping group Maersk jumped 8.1% to the top of the STOXX 600 as trading resumed after two days. Italian medical diagnostic group Diasorin rose for the second session, up 2.3% on the day, following Friday’s first-quarter earnings. German consumer electronics Ceconomy rose 4% after announcing its full-year earnings above estimates.