Stocks in Europe Rise on Economic Optimism; BHP Billiton Gains

May 29 (Bloomberg) -- European stocks climbed, extending the Dow Jones Stoxx 600 Index’s third straight monthly gain, as data on Japanese industrial output and India’s economy signaled the worst of the recession may be over. BHP Billiton Ltd. led mining companies higher as base metals increased in London. Total SA and Royal Dutch Shell Plc advanced as crude oil traded above $66 a barrel. Aker Solutions ASA surged 12 percent after Norway’s largest engineering company won an 850-million kroner ($135 million) contract. The Stoxx 600 added 0.1 percent to 208.21, extending its advance since March 9 to 32 percent. The regional gauge has climbed for three consecutive months for the first time since the credit crisis began in August 2007, as investors speculated the $12.8 trillion pledged by the U.S. government and the Federal Reserve will end the first global recession since World War II. “We are beginning to see some momentum build in some of the key macros that really matter,” said Michael Dicks, head of research and investment strategy at Barclays Wealth in London, which oversees about $203 billion. “Confidence is coming back and risk aversion seems to be abating and that is a pretty healthy backdrop” for equities, he told Bloomberg Television. Reports today showed Japan’s industrial output rose 5.2 percent in April and India’s economy grew more than estimated last quarter. Consumer confidence in the U.S. advanced to the highest since September this month, and matched the highest level in almost a year in the U.K. FTSE 100, DAX National benchmark indexes climbed in 10 of 18 western European markets. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 gained 0.7 percent and Germany’s DAX added 0.2 percent. France’s CAC 40 rose 0.4 percent as Renault SA increased. Stocks pared some of their gains after the Institute for Supply Management-Chicago Inc. said its business barometer fell in April and the Commerce Department said the U.S. economy shrank at a 5.7 percent annual pace in the first quarter. “Investors have been prepared to look through bad news and this is a very bullish characteristic of the market,” said Geoff Wilkinson, head of research at Mint Equities Ltd. in London. “A big move up in oil is also very bullish and commodity prices remain very well supported.” BHP, the world’s largest mining company, rose 3.1 percent to 1,476 pence as base metals including copper, nickel, tin and zinc rose on the London Metal Exchange. Xstrata Plc surged 5.3 percent to 684 pence, while Antofagasta Plc soared 5.2 percent to 629 pence. Total, Shell Total, Europe’s third-largest oil company, added 1.7 percent to 40.75 euros. Shell, the biggest, advanced 0.9 percent to 1,660 pence in London. Cairn Energy Plc increased 1.4 percent to 2,490 pence. Oil climbed for a fifth day in New York, heading for its biggest monthly gain in a decade, after OPEC kept its output unchanged. Crude has gained 29 percent in May as equities rose and the U.S. dollar weakened, spurring demand for commodities. Aker Solutions jumped 12 percent to 55 kroner, the highest in seven months, after signing an 850-million kroner ($135 million) contract with StatoilHydro ASA. Renault added 2.2 percent to 27.06 euros after France’s second-largest carmaker said it will increase cooperation with Nissan Motor Co. to boost cost savings. Fiat SpA dropped 4.2 percent to 7.51 euros after Germany’s N24 channel reported that General Motors Corp. and Magna International Inc. have reached an agreement on a takeover of GM’s Opel unit. Fiat, which was also pursuing Opel, today pulled out of a planned meeting in Berlin. Enel Slips Enel SpA fell 5.6 percent to 4.18 euros after Italy’s biggest utility said it will sell shares at 2.48 euros each, 44 percent below their closing price yesterday, to raise as much as 7.97 billion euros ($11 billion). Separately, the company agreed to sell an 80 percent stake in its natural-gas grid to infrastructure fund F2i SpA and Axa Private Equity for 480 million euros to reduce debt. HeidelbergCement AG climbed 3.8 percent to 25.50 euros after Manager Magazin reported that the majority owner of Germany’s biggest cement maker, Ludwig Merckle, is close to a refinancing agreement.