European Markets Close Higher On Recovery Hopes

European markets closed higher on Thursday, with several key indices from the region hitting fresh record highs, as investors reacted positively to a slew of earnings announcements and encouraging economic data from U.S., Eurozone and Asia.

A drop in bond yields following a steady stream of dovish comments from Fed officials

Fed Chair Jerome Powell reiterated on Wednesday that the central bank would only begin winding down its asset purchases when it’s made substantial progress towards its goals. He also signaled that tapering would happen “well before” the U.S. central bank starts considering raising interest rates.

Worries about spikes in coronavirus infections and the setback on the vaccine front following US drug regulator recommending a pause to Johnson & Johnson’s jab limited markets’ upside.

According to reports, Denmark will not be using AstraZeneca vaccine and the US, South Africa and the EU will temporarily stop the rollout of the Johnson & Johnson jab, after reports of rare blood clotting.

The pan European Stoxx 600 gained 0.45%. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 climbed 0.63%, Germany’s DAX ended 0.3% up and France’s CAC 40 advanced 0.41%, while Switzerland’s SMI gained 0.38%.

Among other markets in Europe, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Iceland, Netherlands, Norway, Poland and Sweden ended higher.

Czech Republic, Ireland, Portugal, Russia, Spain and Ukraine closed weak, while Austria and Turkey ended flat.

In the UK market, Smurfit Kappa Group, GlaxoSmithKline, Mondi, Kingfisher, Antofagasta, B&M and Fresnillo gained 3 to 5%. Polymetal International, United Utilities, Smith DS, Rio Tinto, Diageo, Coca-Cola, Pearson and Severn Trent also rose sharply.

On the other hand, Legal & General Group declined 5%, while Lloyds Banking, Standard Life and JD Sports Fashion lost 2 to 2.4%. HSBC Holdings, Evraz and BP also ended notably lower.

In France, Publicis Groupe shares rose sharply after the company returned to organic growth for the first time since before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Airbus Group, Safran, Schneider Electric, Essilor, LOreal and Atos closed notably higher, while Technip, ArcelorMittal, Sodexo, Air France KLM and Credit Agricole ended weak.

In the German market, Deutsche Wohnen, SAP, Volkswagen, Beiersdorf, MTU Aero Engines, Siemens and Vonovia closed with sharp to moderate gains.

Shares of Swiss engineering company ABB rose sharply after the company raised its full-year sales outlook.

Norwegian lender Sbanken jumped 30 percent after the country’s largest bank DNB announced an all-share offer for the rival.

In economic news, German consumer prices grew 1.7% year-on-year in March, in line with the preliminary estimate, following a 1.3% rise in February, final data from the statistical office Destatis showed. A similar higher rate was last reported in February 2020.

French consumer prices increased 1.1% year-on-year in March, in line with the provisional estimate, and faster than the 0.6% rise in February, final data from the statistical office Insee showed. This was the highest rate since February 2020, when prices were up 1.4%.