European stocks were set to inch higher on Wednesday, gaining ground for the third day in a row and tracking a rally on Wall Street where both the Dow and S&P 500 closed at record highs, helped by recent M&A activity.
Financial spreadbetters expected Britain’s FTSE 100 to open 3 to 4 points higher, or up 0.1 per cent, Germany’s DAX to open 8 to 16 points higher, or up 0.2 per cent, and France’'s CAC 40 to open 6 to 8 points higher, or up 0.2 per cent.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 0.2 per cent and the S&P 500 gained 0.5 per cent, with Actavis Plc featuring among the biggest drivers, up 9 per cent, a day after winning a takeover battle for peer Allergan.