* FTSEurofirst 300 index closes 0.7 percent higher
* Miners boosted on hopes Australia tax plan will end
* Old Mutual jumps; HSBC in talks for 70 pct of Nedbank
By Joanne Frearson
LONDON, Aug 23 (Reuters) - European shares rose on Monday
from the previous session's one-month low, boosted by merger and
acquisition news and on gains in the mining sector on industry
hopes a planned Australian mining tax could be scrapped.
M&A news buoyed the financial sector. Insurer Old Mutual
<OML.L> gained 3.2 percent after HSBC <HSBA.L> said it is in
talks to buy up to 70 percent of South Africa's Nedbank
<NEDJ.J>, in which Old Mutual owns a controlling stake.
HSBC was up 0.8 percent.
The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 <> index of top
shares closed 0.7 percent higher at 1,036.51 points after
hitting a one-month closing low in the previous session on
concerns about global economic growth.
"We have had a good day on the back of M&A activity, which
is surprising considering the concern about the prospects of a
double dip recession," said Mike Lenhoff, chief strategist at
Brewin Dolphin.
"Corporates are taking the view that the operating
environment looks satisfactory and it's time to buy."
Mining stocks were in demand on the possibility that
Australia's inconclusive weekend election would sink a planned
mining tax. Anglo American <AAL.L>, Antofagasta <ANTO.L> and Rio
Tinto <RIO.L> rose 0.6 to 1.6 percent.
BHP Billiton <BLT.L> was 0.5 percent higher. Canada's
fertiliser producer Potash Corp <POT.TO> <POT.N> is seeking
talks with possible counter-bidders as it fights off an unwanted
$39 billion takeover offer from BHP Billiton.
Top fertiliser company K+S <SDFG.DE> was also buoyed by M&A
news and climbed 2.1 percent as traders pointed to industry
speculations on more potential acquisition offers.
PETROFAC GAINS
Petrofac <PFC.L> gained 3.5 percent after the oil and gas
services company forecast a 20 percent rise in net profit for
the full year as its backlog of contracts continued to grow and
it won its first contract in Iraq. []
Global mergers and acquisitions have hit nearly $200 billion
so far in August, $77 billion shy of the record set in 1999 for
what is typically one of the quietest months of the year,
Thomson Reuters data showed. []
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For a graphic on M&A data for August, click on
http://r.reuters.com/dag36n
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In other M&A news, beverage groups SABMiller <SAB.L> and
Asahi Breweries <2502.T> are looking at Foster's Group's
<FGL.AX> beer operations, valued at more than $10 billion, but
have not yet made any formal offers, sources said.
SABMiller was up 1.7 percent.
Hewlett-Packard Co <HPQ.N> offered $24 a share in cash for
data storage company 3PAR Inc<PAR.N>. The $1.6 billion offer
tops a competing bid by technology rival Dell Inc <DELL.O>.
But some analysts stayed cautious because of recent poor
macro numbers, especially from the United States.
"Macroeconomic figures are still likely to come in worse than
expected and could push down the market. On the other hand we
have some relief from M&A activities, but that is not going to
be able to offset the bad economic numbers," said Koen de Leus,
economist at KBC Securities.
The Euro STOXX 50 <>, the euro zone's blue-chip
index, rose 0.6 percent to 2,660.84 points. The index faced
strong resistance at around 2,670 -- its 38.2 percent Fibonacci
retracement of a fall from a high in April to a low in May --
and further at around 2,698, its 50-day moving average.
Across Europe, the FTSE 100 <> index gained 0.8
percent, Germany's DAX <> was up 0.1 percent and France's
CAC 40 <> was 0.8 percent higher.
(Graphics by Scott Barber, additional reporting by Harpreet
Bhal; Editing by David Cowell)
