BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - European markets ended on a strong note on Thursday, buoyed by a rebound in bond yields and upbeat Chinese exports data.
Markets also reacted positively to Chinese central bank fixing the yuan above 7.00 a dollar for the first time in a decade.
With stocks from several sectors scoring solid gains, the pan European Stoxx 600 moved up 1.66%. Among the major markets in Europe, France ended sharply higher, with its benchmark CAC 40 rising as much as 2.31%. Germany's DAX and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 added 1.68% and 1.21%, respectively. Switzerland's SMI ended 2.28% up.
Among other markets in Europe, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden and Turkey ended with sharp to moderate gains, while Iceland closed weak.
In the French market, ArcelorMittal, Airbus Group, STMicroElectronics, Safran, Technip and Socite Generale gained 3 to 5%.
Louis Vuitton, Air Liquide, Vinci, Sanofi, Saint Gobain, Peugeot, Credit Agricole, Dassault Systemes, Danone, Thales, Accor, Hermes International and Capgemini also rose sharply.
In Germany, Bayer rallied nearly 7%, extending gains from previous session. Covestro, Deutsche Bank, Thyssenkrupp, Infineon, BASF, HeidelbergCement, Deutsche Post, SAP, Linde and Merck gained 2 to 5%.
In the UK market, shares of Hargreaves Lansdown zoomed nearly 12% after the company reported a rise in FY pretax profit on the back of higher revenue.
Rolls-Royce Holdings gained about 6%. Antofagasta advanced 5.4%, while NMC Health, Ocado, BHP Group, DS Smith and Anglo Americal gained 4 to 5%.
Phoenix, Ashtead Group, Smurfit Kappa, Halma, Micro Focus, Glencore, Burberry Group, CRH, Johnson Matthey and Croda International also ended with impressive gains.
On the other hand, BT Group ended sharply lower following a rating downgrade. Direct Line Insurance, Standard Life, Centrica, Barclays and Coca Cola ended with sharp to moderate losses.
In economic news, the latest projection from the Bank of France showed the French economy is set to retain its growth momentum in the third quarter.
Gross domestic product is expected to grow 0.3% in the three months to September, the bank said in its monthly Business Trends report.
Preliminary estimates from the statistical office INSEE had shown that the economy expanded 0.2% sequentially in the second quarter, which was slower than the 0.3% growth logged in the first three months of the year.
Weaker consumer spending hurt growth in the second quarter.
The Bank of France report also showed that the manufacturing confidence indicator was unchanged at 95 in July. Activity is expected to grow at the same rate in August, the survey said.
Data from the Chinese customs office showing unexpected annual growth in Chinese exports contributed substantially to the rally in European markets today.
The report said Chinese exports in July were up by 3.3% compared to the same month a year ago, while economists had expected a 2% percent decrease.
While the report also showed a 5.6% year-over-year drop in Chinese imports, that was smaller than the 8.3% slump expected by economists.
The data has eased concerns about the impact of the U.S.-China trade dispute even though it reflects a period before the latest escalation in the trade war.
Meanwhile, China's central bank set the midpoint for the yuan above 7.00 per dollar the first time in a decade, but it was not as weak as many had expected.
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