European stock close

European stocks climbed to a six-week high as Publicis (PUB) Groupe SA posted increased profit, London Stock Exchange Group Plc reported higher revenue and fewer Americans than forecast filed jobless-benefit claims.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose 0.8 percent to 299.53 at 4:30 p.m. in London, the highest level since June 4. The gauge increased 0.6 percent yesterday as Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said the pace of the economic recovery will determine when the U.S. central bank starts reducing its program of quantitative easing.

U.S. jobless-benefit claims dropped by 24,000 to 334,000 last week, the fewest since early May, Labor Department figures showed today. The median forecast of economists projected a reading of 345,000.

A gauge of manufacturing in the Philadelphia region increased to 19.8 in July, the highest level since March 2011, from 12.5 the prior month. Readings greater than zero signal expansion. The median forecast of economists called for a reading of 8.

National benchmark indexes advanced in all of the 18 western European markets, except Norway

FTSE 100 6,634.36 +62.43 +0.95% CAC 40 3,927.79 +55.77 +1.44% DAX 8,337.09 +82.37 +1.00%

Publicis climbed 3.7 percent to 59.98 euros in Paris trading as first-half net income rose 15 percent to 314 million euros. Revenue increased 8.7 percent to 3.35 billion euros, topping the 3.31 billion-euro average of five analysts’ estimates.

WPP Plc (WPP), the world’s biggest advertising company, advanced 3.7 percent to 1,211 pence in London trading.

LSE advanced 7.4 percent to 1,590 pence, the highest price since February 2008, as the operator of Europe’s oldest independent bourse reported a 39 percent increase in first-quarter revenue.

BioMerieux (BIM) jumped 3.8 percent to 76.54 euros, the largest gain in eight months. The French maker of tests for HIV and hepatitis reported sales for the first half of 754 million euros and confirmed its revenue-growth forecast.

Ericsson retreated 4.8 percent to 75.80 kronor after it reported revenue that missed estimates as competition with Huawei Technologies Co. for contracts to build and service phone systems intensified. Second-quarter sales were little changed at 55.3 billion kronor ($8.4 billion), compared with the 56 billion-krona average forecast of analysts.