BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS, Aug 8 — European stocks moved higher on Wednesday as global markets extended gains from the previous session. Investors shrugged off recession fears, focusing on earnings and the latest economic data.
Markets also reacted positively to Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Uchida Shinichi's comment that the Japanese central bank will not raise interest rates when financial markets are volatile, reported dpa-AFX news.
The pan European Stoxx 600 gained 1.54 per cent. The UK's FTSE 100 surged 1.75 per cent, Germany's DAX climbed 1.5 per cent and France's CAC ended 1.91 per cent up, while Switzerland's SMI jumped 2.89 per cent.
Among other markets in Europe, Austria, Belgium, Finland, Greece, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden and Turkey ended sharply higher. Iceland closed modestly up. Denmark declined sharply, while Poland ended flat.
In economic releases, German industrial output grew 1.4 per cent on a month-on-month basis in June, according to data from Destatis. Production was expected to climb 1 per cent after declining by a revised 3.1 per cent in May.
Germany's exports declined more than expected in June, while imports posted a moderate recovery, according to a separate set of data.
France's trade deficit decreased in June as exports rose amid a flat change in imports.
Elsewhere, revised official data showed Britain's economy grew more strongly than previously thought in 2022.
GDP jumped 4.8 per cent in 2022, instead of the 4.3 per cent previously estimated, the Office for National Statistics said in its annual revisions of historical data stretching back to 1997.
UK house prices are expected to continue a moderate upward trend for the remainder of this year, according to the mortgage lender Halifax.
House prices grew 0.8 per cent on a monthly basis in July after staying flat over the previous three months. Year-on-year, house price growth accelerated to 2.3 per cent in July compared to 1.9 per cent rise in June.
— Bernama-dpa-AFX
