UK and European shares rallied to an eight day high on Thursday. The Euro Stoxx 50 jumped above 3475 while the FTSE 100 rose above 6360, the highest since November 11.
The surge in European stock prices tracks gains seen in US markets on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve offered their strongest hint yet that rates will rise in December. Higher interest rates are not in the long-run best interest of stock markets but for now there’s just a sense of relief that uncertainty over the first hike is close to being over.
Royal Mail (L:RMG) is a top riser on the FTSE 100 after well-received first half results, with Johnson Matthey (L:JMAT) and CRH (L:CRH) also rising strongly. The tepid reaction in the US dollar and commodity prices to news of an imminent US rate hike gave the basic resource sector the opportunity to rally.
US stocks look set for a higher open as the Fed relief rally continues ahead of more retailer earnings from Gap Inc (N:GPS) and Best Buy Co Inc (N:BBY) and what could be more weak manufacturing data from the Philly Fed.
USA pre-opening levels
S&P 500: 6 points higher at 2,089
Dow Jones: 54 points higher at 17,791
Nasdaq 100: 15 points higher at 4,668
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