BP rallies after upbeat earnings, buyback increase
UBS slips after Q4 results
Nordic Semiconductor sinks after bleak outlook

Feb 6 Reuters European stocks edged higher on Tuesday as bumper earnings from BP helped offset losses in UBS and Nordic Semiconductor, while investors took comfort from fresh stimulus for China39;s battered financial markets.

The panEuropean STOXX 600 index added 0.2, following a 1.3 jump in Asian stocks after China39;s state fund stepped up efforts to stabilise the declining market.

Londonlisted oil giant BP climbed 5.6 after reporting fourthquarter earnings of 3 billion, exceeding forecasts, and accelerating the pace of its share repurchases.

Europe39;s oil gas index rose 1.7 to lead sectoral gains.

Still, there was an element of caution after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell pushed back firmly against speculation of imminent rate cuts, prompting investors to reassess the trajectory of rates this year.

Traders are pricing in a 15 chance of a March rate cut, down from 46 a week ago, and see a 62 probability of a rate cut by May, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.

With the U.S. economy bounding along, as evidenced by the latest services sector growth snapshot, policymakers still want to keep a tighter rein on demand, so high borrowing costs are likely to linger for longer, said Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown.

European stocks reached a twoyear high last week, helped by earnings and gains in…