European stocks begin November with new highs.

On the basis of buoyant earnings reports, European equities touched new highs on Monday, kicking off November with a strong momentum as eurozone markets outperformed in early trade.

By 0829 GMT, the Pan-European STOXX 600 had gained 0.8 percent, surpassing its previous all-time high set in mid-August.

The global mood was lifted by Japan’s post-election surge and China’s coal price stabilisation. [GLOB/MKTS] [MET/L] The German DAX and France’s CAC 40 both gained roughly 0.8 percent, while the FTSE 100 gained only 0.4 percent.

Barclays (LON: BARC) fell 2.0 percent after announcing that CEO Jes Staley will step down following a probe by regulators into his ties with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Pharma stocks were among the top gainers, with Sanofi (NASDAQ: SNY) up 2.0 percent after HSBC upgraded the company to “buy.”

Volkswagen (DE: VOWG p) gained 0.7 percent after announcing that Skoda Auto manufacturing would resume on Sunday following a two-week outage caused by the chip crisis.

Pandora (OTC: PANDY), the world’s largest jewellery company, fell 3.5 percent despite upgrading its full-year forecast.

Story by : Norvisi Mawunyegah