* FTSEurofirst closes 0.4 percent higher
* Mubarak departure lifts sentiment
* Commodity firms gain but Nokia slides
By Simon Falush
LONDON, Feb 11 (Reuters) - Europe's shares ended a three-day
losing streak on Friday, with commodity stocks boosted by news
that embattled Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak had stepped
down.
Mubarak stepped down after 30 years of rule, handing power
to the army and bowing to relentless pressure from a popular
uprising after his military support evaporated. []
The volatile situation in Egypt had soured investors'
appetite for riskier assets like equities, but Mubarak's
departure gave the market reins back to those with a more upbeat
view on the corporate and economic environment.
The FTSEurofirst <> index of leading European shares
ended 0.4 percent higher at 1,174.13. It has added 0.8 percent
this week, extending the gains for the year to 4.7 percent.
Mining stocks <.SXPP> were among the main beneficiaries of
the improved sentiment, with metal prices rebounding. Rio Tinto
<RIO.L> added 1.6 percent, and Anglo American <AAL.L> gained 3.4
percent.
Energy stocks <.SXEP> were also firmly higher, though oil
prices fell as fears about supply disruption due to trouble in
Egypt faded. BG Group <BG.L> ended up 3.2 percent.
Portuguese fuel and oil company Galp Energia <GALP.LS> rose
4.1 percent after posting adjusted fourth-quarter net profit at
the top end of expectations.
Analysts said there would be scope for further strength for
equities on the news from Egypt.
"The markets spiked on the news. We're back towards the
multi-year highs we saw earlier this week. It seems to reduce
uncertainty. I wouldn't be surprised to see Wall Street finish
quite strongly tonight," Nick Serff, trader at City Index said.
Others cautioned that developments in Egypt could yet derail
a recovery in equities, however.
"Clearly this is just the beginning, and any suggestion that
the new elections won't pass off without event could rock
sentiment once again," David Jones, chief market strategist at
IG Index.
NOKIA KNOCKED
Nokia <NOK1V.HE> slumped 14 percent after saying it had
teamed up with Microsoft <MSFT.O> to take on Google <GOOG.O> and
Apple <APPL.O> in the fast-growing smartphone market, and that
2011 and 2012 would be "transition years", fuelling fears of a
negative impact on margins. []
Nokia said its operating margin would be "10 percent or
more" after the transition period, compared with a margin of
7.5 percent for 2010.
"Given that the people who were positive on the stock were
looking for mid-teens devices margins by 2012, we can see some
cuts to estimates," Richard Windsor, global technology
strategist at Nomura said.
L'Oreal <OREP.PA> fell 4.2 percent after fourth-quarter
comparable sales were below forecasts. []
ThyssenKrupp <TKAG.DE>, Germany's biggest steelmaker, lost
2.7 percent after announcing rising losses at its new U.S. and
Brazilian plants. []
French tyremaker Michelin <MICP.PA> gained 3.7 percent after
results beat forecasts. []
Legal & General <LGEN.L> rose 3.3 percent after a bullish
broker note from Nomura.
Across Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 <>, Germany's DAX
<> and France's CAC40 <> gained between 0.2 and 0.9
percent.
(Additional reporting by Brian Gorman; Editing by Will
Waterman)
