European stock close

European stocks rose, rebounding from their longest streak of weekly losses in 14 months, as investors awaited this week's Federal Reserve meeting for signs on the pace of stimulus reduction.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose 0.8 percent to 293.31 at 4:30 p.m. in London, for the first back-to-back gains this month. The gauge fell 1.5 percent last week and has lost 5.6 percent since May 22 when Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said the central bank could pare quantitative easing if the U.S. economy improves sustainably.

The Federal Open Market Committee will hold its policy meeting tomorrow and the day after, with Bernanke explaining his stance after the decision on June 19. At stake is the Fed's monthly purchase of $85 billion of Treasuries and mortgage securities and the target rate for overnight lending between banks, which has been kept at almost zero since December 2008.

A report showed that manufacturing in the New York, northern New Jersey and southern Connecticut region unexpectedly increased this month. The Fed Bank of New York's general economic index rose to 7.84 in June, from minus 1.4 in May. Economists had predicted a reading of zero, the dividing line between expansion and contraction.

National benchmark indexes climbed in 14 of the 17 western European markets trading today.

FTSE 100 6,330.49 +22.23 +0.35% CAC 40 3,863.66 +58.50 +1.54% DAX 8,215.73 +87.77 +1.08%

Telefonica SA advanced 2.3 percent to 10.26 euros as El Mundo reported that Spain blocked AT&T Inc.'s takeover bid for the company because Telefonica is "strategic" to Spain's economy. Spokeswoman Marisa Navas said the company didn't receive any formal or informal approach from AT&T.

Belgacom SA rose 1.9 percent to 17.54 euros. Exane BNP Paribas raised its rating of Belgium's largest telephone company to neutral from underperform. Belgacom's Scarlet brand last week introduced an 8 euro-per-month mobile-service plan.

ABB rose 2.6 percent to 20.71 francs after the company named as CEO Ulrich Spiesshofer, who oversaw the company's $1 billion deal to buy California-based Power-One Inc. He will take over after Joe Hogan steps down on Sept. 15.

Saipem plunged 29 percent to 14.24 euros, for the worst performance on the Stoxx 600. Italy's largest oil-and-gas engineering company cut its forecast for earnings before interest and tax this year by 650 million euros to 750 million euros. The company now expects a net loss of 300 million euros to 350 million euros.

Imagination Technologies Group Plc fell 3.5 percent to 304.4 pence as Barclays Plc cut the U.K. designer of chip technology for phones and tablets to equal weight, the equivalent of hold, from overweight. Barclays cited pressure on smartphone prices.