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European shares edge up on M&A, ECB speculation

Reuters - UK Focus

By Francesco Canepa

LONDON, Sept 1 (Reuters) - European shares kicked off September a touch higher on Monday, helped by some mergers and acquisitions speculation and expectations of new monetary largesse in Europe.

British broadcaster ITV (LSE: ITV.L - news) rose 2.5 percent after The Telegraph reported Liberty Global Plc (NasdaqGS: LBTYA - news) was canvassing support from major ITV shareholders following its acquisition this summer of a 6.4 percent stake, raising speculation of a full takeover bid.

The stock was among top gainers on the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index, which was up 0.3 percent at 1,377.23 points by 0704 GMT.

The index was tracking gains on Wall Street and Asia as speculation that the European Central Bank, due to meet later this week, may announce new stimulus measures outweighed worries about weak Chinese data and tensions between Russia and the West over Ukraine. (Reporting By Francesco Canepa; Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta)