European Stocks Advance as U.S. Manufacturing Accelerates

European stocks advanced, after the Stoxx Europe 600 Index declined last month, as a report showed manufacturing in the U.S. expanded at a faster pace in March.

Alstom SA jumped the most since January 2012 after agreeing to sell a unit to Triton. Metso Oyj soared 19 percent after Weir Group Plc proposed a merger with the Finnish maker of rock crushers. ICAP Plc rose 2.6 percent after the world’s largest broker of transactions between banks forecast full-year profit will meet analysts’ estimates, even as sales from its broking unit continued to decline.