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April 29 (Reuters) - European stocks edged back towards
record-highs on Thursday after a slew of upbeat earnings reports
and the U.S. Federal Reserve's pledge to stick to loose monetary
policy.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index .STOXX rose 0.4% by 0713
GMT, trading just about 3 points below its record peak.
Consumer goods giant Unilever ULVR.L rose 3.2% as a pick
up in home cooking and a strong economic recovery in China drove
better-than-expected quarterly sales. The company also announced
a share buyback programme up to 3 billion euros ($3.6 billion).
Finnish telecom network equipment maker Nokia NOKIA.HE
surged 13.7% as growth in sales of network and 5G equipment
boosted its quarterly earnings. Among oil majors, UK's Royal Dutch Shell RDSa.L gained
1.6% after it raised its dividend by 4% following a strong
quarter, while France's Total TOTF.PA was up 1.4% after it
reported first-quarter earnings close to pre-pandemic levels.
French planemaker Airbus AIR.PA added 3.0% after it posted
higher quarterly core earnings.