European markets rise as ECB flags ‘clear signs of economic improvement’

Market report

The European markets made further progress as the European Central Bank said there were “clear signs of improvement” in the Eurozone economy.

Christine Lagarde helped to buoy sentiment, although the central bank still cited uncertainty on the horizon and global traders still have concerns over virus rates in Asia.

Nevertheless, London traders were hopeful as positive company announcements from the start of the annual earnings season helped to keep the FTSE higher.

The FTSE 100 closed 42.95 points, or 0.62 per cent, higher at 6,938.24 on Thursday.

Elsewhere, the German Dax increased by 0.82 per cent and the French Cac moved 0.91 per cent higher.

Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC

Markets UK, said: “European markets have managed to consolidate the gains we saw yesterday, though there’s been a slightly more defensive bias than was the case yesterday, with utilities amongst the better performers, while energy has once again lagged due to lower oil prices.

“Airlines seem to be performing quite well this side of the Atlantic, although there does appear to be a bit of a domestic bias, with Easyjet and Ryanair outperforming IAG, probably down to the fact that the smaller airlines don’t have exposure to international travel.”

Across the Atlantic, trading was more cautious and the main markets dipped on the opening bell as they struggled for direction following strong gains on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, sterling lost steam against a Euro buoyed by the ECB’S comments and a dollar which pushed higher on improved weekly jobs figures.

The pound decreased by 0.56 per cent versus the US dollar to 1.385 and was down 0.37 per cent against the euro at 1.153.

The price of oil nudged a touch higher after two days of significant slumps, as concerns over the impact of the latest coronavirus wave in Asia on oil demand continue to linger.

The price of Brent crude oil increased by 0.23 per cent to 6547 dollars per barrel.

The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust, up 44.5p at 1,251.5p, Polymetal International, up 55.5p at 1,634.5p, SSE, up 50.5p at 1,509p, and IAG, up 6.56p at 200.5p.

The biggest fallers of the day were BAE Systems, down 26.5p at 499.9p, Fresnillo, down 20.6p at 908.6p, Informa, down 11.6p at 552.6p, and Antofagasta, down 36p at 1,805p.