European stocks logged modest gains Wednesday, with bank shares advancing in the wake of Spain’s Banco Santander SA’s deal to buy struggling Banco Popular Español, MarketWatch reports.
The Stoxx Europe 600 index pushed up 0.2% to 389.98 after falling when the session opened. The benchmark was carried higher as financial, utility, oil and gas and consumer services shares rose. But health care and basic material shares were losing the most.
