World stocks get a lift from growth hopes

By Lionel Laurent

LONDON (Reuters) - Global equities were set for their third straight day of gains on Wednesday, buoyed by positive economic data and a fresh pledge from the European Central Bank to ramp up stimulus if necessary.

Over the past month, markets have clawed back losses from a summer sell-off driven by fears of a China slowdown. Investors are betting that the global economy is going through a short-lived rough patch rather than a deeper downturn.

European equities rose 1 percent, German bund yields ticked higher and the euro fell after ECB President Mario Draghi said policymakers would review measures so far deployed when they meet in December.

The rally spilled over from Asia, where economy-friendly comments from China's president lifted Shanghai stocks and Japan Post's $12 billion initial public offering boosted Tokyo firms.

In Europe, private-sector surveys indicated Germany was on a solid growth path going into the fourth quarter. French activity expanded at its fastest clip in four months in October.

"After the Draghi comments, you are seeing investors getting on board," said Nick Lawson, a managing director at Deutsche Bank, though he cautioned that an underwhelming earnings season and a still-sluggish macroeconomic backdrop remained a concern.

Frankfurt's DAX index underperformed peers, dragged down by an 8 percent fall in Volkswagen shares. Fresh admissions over its emissions scandal threatened to make a serious dent in car sales.

Europe's earnings season is past the halfway point and just over half of the companies that have reported have failed to meet forecasts. Companies exposed to the commodities slump have been hit hard: Shares of Vedanta Resources fell 3.1 percent after suspending its dividend, though Glencore got a lift after saying it was on track to cut debt.

Oil prices fell on profit-taking while copper prices bounced back from one-month lows.

Markets remained fixed on Friday's U.S. non-farm payrolls report and whether the data will support the case for the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates in December.

Before that report, markets will have a chance to gauge the health of the U.S. economy through the ADP employment data and the ISM report on services sector sentiment due later in the session.

"We've seen non-farm payrolls go in a completely different direction from ADP or ISM and we've also seen average hourly earnings or the unemployment rate trigger a U-turn after the initial reaction to payrolls," wrote Kathy Lien, managing director of FX strategy at BK Asset Management.

"So traders are rightfully sceptical about whether the labour market report will confirm the Federal Reserve's hawkish bias until the actual report is released."

(Reporting by Lionel Laurent, editing by Larry King)