In Europe, the Stoxx Europe 600 climbed 0.4% in morning trade. Industrials and energy sectors led gains while communication services and information technology sectors lost ground.

Shares in Capita rose 3.5% and Rotork added 2.8%. The Sage Group slipped 2.3%, posting its fourth consecutive session of declines.

The U.K.'s FTSE 100, which is dominated by large international businesses, edged up 0.3%.

Other stocks in Europe also mostly climbed. The U.K.'s FTSE 250 gained 0.3%, and Germany's DAX added 0.5%.

The British pound strengthened 0.2% against the U.S. dollar, with 1 pound buying $1.37. Meanwhile, the Swiss franc and the euro traded flat against the U.S. dollar.

In commodities, Brent crude oil rose 0.5% to $56.34 a barrel. Gold declined 0.7% to $1,841.90 a troy ounce.

German 10-year bund yields were down to minus 0.523% from minus 0.517% and the yield on 10-year U.K. gilts was up to 0.315% from 0.309%.

The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield rose to 1.104% from 1.089%. Yields move in the opposite direction from prices.

In Asia, indexes were mixed as Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 0.7% and Japan's Nikkei 225 index climbed 0.8%, whereas China's benchmark Shanghai Composite was lower 0.9%.

--An artificial-intelligence tool was used in creating this article.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

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