Shares in Europe climbed in early trade Wednesday, tracking gains in the United States overnight and in Asia today, with resource plays supporting indexes.
At 1:15 p.m. (I.S.T.), Britain's FTSE, France's CAC and Germany's DAX gained 0.5% to 1.2%.
Commodity stocks led the gainers with miners BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Xstrata rising between 1.7% and 2.6%.
Financials, too, edged up in line with broad markets: Barclays, BNP Paribas, Credit Agricole and Societe Generale added 0.6% to 1.2%.
But retailers slipped, led by Marks and Spencer, which was off 2%. Debenhams lost 1.2%.