EU Session: Boost for European Markets after BoE Rate Cut

European markets continue their upward movement on Thursday afternoon, driven by a series of corporate earnings reports and the Bank of England’s rate cut.

The regional Stoxx 600 index increased by 0.77%, with almost all sectors trading in the green. The UK’s FTSE 100 rose by 1.58%, reaching a record high, while the pound plummeted by 1.06% against the US dollar – signaling that traders expect further rate cuts. This occurred despite the central bank’s warning that it will act “cautiously” with future cuts and its raised inflation forecast.

Meanwhile, transportation giant Maersk saw a 9% increase after surpassing earnings expectations for the fourth quarter, despite forecasting weaker results for this year.

The Stoxx Autos index overcame early losses, rising by 0.95% amid ongoing uncertainty regarding the impact of US tariffs this year.

However, Swedish manufacturer Volvo Cars reported a 9.4% drop after warning that 2025 would be challenging, with growing competition from Chinese electric vehicles and a slowdown in market growth.

Meanwhile, Danish brewing giant Carlsberg reported slightly lower-than-expected sales for the fourth quarter and forecast weaker growth for 2025.
Asia-Pacific markets traded mostly in positive territory overnight, following Wall Street’s gains on Wednesday, as investors shrugged off a week of trade disruptions. US stock futures remained nearly unchanged after major US indices posted two consecutive sessions of growth.