Sawt Falasteen - European defence stocks soar as govts up military spend

BAE Systems surged 14 percent, helping London's benchmark FTSE 100 index to a record high, the latest in a series over recent months.

French defence group Thales won also 14 percent and German peer Rheinmetall rallied 12 percent in late morning trade.

"Europe is rallying round Ukraine and it's hard to see defence stocks not enjoying years of orders," noted Neil Wilson, analyst at TipRanks.

European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen warned on Sunday that "we urgently have to rearm Europe" as leaders from the continent met in London for crisis talks over Ukraine.

"It's now of utmost importance we increase spending ... it's important we prepare for the worst," she added.

It came after British Prime Minister Keir Starmer last week pledged to boost UK defence spending to 2.5 percent of the economy by 2027.

In Germany, the two parties hoping to form the next government are planning to plough hundreds of billions of euros into defence and infrastructure when in power, the Bild newspaper reported Sunday.

- Tariffs watch -

Asian stock markets largely gained Monday, with investors eyeing a potential Chinese stimulus package and US President Donald Trump's looming tariffs.

Investors were also watching for any last-ditch deals to ward off the levies hitting Mexico, Canada and China due to come into force on Tuesday.

Trump has confirmed 25 percent tariffs on products from Mexico and Canada, and further imposed another 10 percent on Chinese goods from this week.

Hong Kong and Shanghai stock markets shed early gains ahead of the key Chinese parliamentary meeting that opens on Wednesday, while Tokyo closed up 1.7 percent.

Chinese stocks had been boosted in part by data released on Saturday that showed manufacturing activity grew in February after a dip the previous month.

Hong Kong was helped by the blockbuster IPO of bubble-tea and drinks giant Mixue Group, which saw its shares jump 40 percent.

Elsewhere, the cryptocurrency sector was steadier after huge volatility in recent days.

Trump on Sunday named five cryptocurrencies under consideration for a new US "strategic reserve", sending their values skyrocketing and partly reversing a recent slump.

His announcement helped spur a broad rally among cryptocurrencies, which had plummeted days earlier as Trump's tariff threats and new scandals affecting the sector shook investor confidence in the highly volatile assets.

- Key figures around 1015 GMT -

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.5 percent at 8,849.33 points

Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.6 percent at 8,160.07

Frankfurt - DAX: UP 1.2 percent at 22,827.35

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 1.7 percent at 37,785.47 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 0.3 percent at 23,006.27 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.1 percent at 3,316.93 (close)

New York - Dow: UP 1.4 percent at 43,840.91 (close)

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0437 from $1.0384 on Friday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2637 from $1.2584

Dollar/yen: UP at 150.38 from 149.52 yen

Euro/pound: UP at 82.60 pence from 82.51 pence

West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.7 percent at $69.31 per barrel

Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.6 percent at $72.38 per barrel

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A.AbuSaada--SF-PST