European Stocks Close Broadly Higher

(RTTNews) - European stocks closed broadly higher on Thursday with investors closely following the news from the Middle East front and reacting to the European Central Bank's rate hike announcement.

The pan European Stoxx 600 climbed 0.54%. The UK's FTSE 100 and France's CAC 40 both gained 0.48%, while Germany's DAX edged up 0.06%. Switzerland's SMI finished with a gain of 0.49%.

Among other markets in Europe, Australia, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Greece, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain and Sweden closed higher.

Russia ended weak, while Finland, Iceland and Türkiye closed flat.

As widely expected, the European Central Bank raised its interest rates for the first time in nearly three years in a bid to cushion the impact of rising inflation that is triggered by the surge in energy prices due to the conflict in the Middle East, as the single currency economy struggles to grow.

The Governing Council, led by ECB President Christine Lagarde, hiked the deposit rate by 25 basis points to 2.25%. The main refinancing rate was lifted to 2.40% and the marginal lending rate to 2.65%.

"The war in the Middle East is generating inflation pressures, and the decision to raise rates is robust across a range of scenarios mapping out how the shock might evolve and affect the medium-term outlook for the euro area," the ECB said in a statement.

The ECB now sees headline inflation to average 3% this year, 2.3% next year and 2% in 2028. Core inflation that excludes energy and food is forecast at 2.5% this year and next, and 2.2% in 2028.

Eurozone growth is expected to average 0.8% this year, 1.2% next year and 1.5 % in 2028.

In the UK market, Standard Chartered climbed nearly 3.5%. Airtel Africa, Prudential, Anglo American Plc, HSBC Holdings and GSK gained 2.1%-2.7%.

Fresnillo, Burberry Group, Glencore, 3i Group, Polar Capital Technology Trust, BT Group, Intertek Group, Centrica, Rolls-Royce Holdings, Standard Life and Rio Tinto also moved notably higher.

Halma tanked more than 15%

The Sage Group and ICG shed 5.2% and 4.7%, respectively. Relx, AutoTrader Group, Barratt Redrow, RightMove, Metlen Energy & Metals, Experian, Berkeley Group Holdings, Mondi, Persimmo and Smith & Nephew lost 2%-3.4%.

In the German market, Siemens Energy moved up by about 6%. RWE climbed nearly 3.5%. Infineon, E.ON, MTU Aero Engines, Rheinmetall, BASF, Bayer and Continental gained 1%-2.7%.

Hugo Boss shares moved up sharply after the U.K.'s Frasers Group launched a voluntary public takeover offer for the German fashion brand.

SAP ended down by about 6.5%. Deutsche Telekom shed 3.1%, while Siemens Healthineers, BMW, Commerzbank, Fresenius, Vonovia and Volkswagen closed lower by 1%-2%.

In the French market, ArcelorMittal, STMicroelectronics and Schneider Electric gained 2.5%-2.8%.

Engie, Thales, Veolia Environment, Carrefour, Safran, Kering, LVMH, Total Energies, Bouygues and Unibail Rodamco also ended notably higher.

Dassault Systemes ended nearly 6% down. Capgemini and Teleperformance closed lower by about 4.2% and 4.1%, respectively. Legrand, Eurofins Scientific, Air Liquide, Orange and Saint-Gobain shed 1.4%-2%.

A survey from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors showed that the U.K. house price balance was unchanged from the previous month at -35% in May, but some measures showed signs of stabilization in the property market.