Frankfurt (Reuters) - After the recent downward trend, the European stock markets started the week higher again.

Germany's leading index, the Dax, rose by almost one percent to 15,710 points on Monday. Its European counterpart, the EuroStoxx50, climbed by 1.2 percent to 4262 points at its peak. On Wall Street, US futures also pointed to a friendly start to trading.

With oil prices continuing to rise, investors stocked up on energy companies. The corresponding sector index rose by 1.5 percent, making it one of the biggest winners. Rising heating oil prices and tighter supply were the drivers, analysts said. Brent crude oil from the North Sea and US light oil WTI rose again by more than one percent to up to 85.86 dollars and 82.47 dollars per barrel respectively.

However, it remains to be seen whether the countermovement on the stock market is sustainable in view of the current negative factors, stated Christian Henke, analyst at broker IG. "The growth engine China has slowed down and there is great concern that this could also be a brake on the global economy." In addition, the ongoing turbulence in the real estate sector could increasingly become a major problem in the financial sector, warned Jürgen Molnar, strategist at broker RoboMarkets.

The Chinese central bank did attempt to support the sluggish economy by cutting interest rates. However, the move was seen by experts as half-hearted, as the five-year interest rate, which is particularly important for mortgages and therefore for the struggling real estate sector, remained surprisingly unchanged. "It is possible that the central bank wanted to send a signal of reassurance, along the lines of: the situation is not dramatic," commented Thomas Altmann, portfolio manager at asset manager QC Partners.

European real estate stocks fell for the seventh day in a row, losing around one percent. British construction company Crest Nicholson, which revised its earnings outlook downwards, came under particular pressure. Its shares fell by around 15 percent at their peak, making them the cheapest they have been for three years. Rising interest rates and high inflation discouraged consumers from taking out mortgage loans.

FANTASY AT CONTINENTAL

Meanwhile, the prospect of a corporate reorganization and a partial sale sparked share price fantasies at Continental. The automotive supplier rose by up to 7.7 percent, leaving the other DAX stocks far behind. Wolfgang Reitzle, Chairman of the Supervisory Board, and Nikolai Setzer, Chairman of the Executive Board, are working on a reorganization, reported "Manager Magazin" on Monday, citing company circles. The automotive supply business bundled in the Contitech division with products such as belts and sealing systems is therefore to be sold.

Meanwhile, the slump at Dutch payment processor Adyen continued. Last week, the company lost around twelve billion euros in stock market value following a slump in profits. As a result, several banks and analysts withdrew their buy recommendation for the shares. On Monday, they extended their losses following downgrades from two further US investment banks, losing almost eight percent at the peak.

(Report by Stefanie Geiger and Zuzanna Szymanska, edited by Elke Ahlswede. If you have any questions, please contact our editorial team at berlin.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for politics and the economy) or frankfurt.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for companies and markets).)