Commuters and pedestrians cross London Bridge in the City of London, UK, on Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024. British company executives urged the Bank of England to slash interest rates soon to prop up the flagging economy after “depressed” confidence sank to a four-month low. Photographer: Hollie Adams/Bloomberg via Getty Images
This is CNBC's live blog covering European markets.
European markets closed higher on Thursday, as positive momentum was maintained on a busy week of earnings.
The Stoxx 600 index was up 0.2% by the close. Sectors were mostly higher, with autos falling 0.9% as oil and gas stocks nudged 0.9% higher.
The Bank of England announced it would hold interest rates steady which was in line with expectations. More policymakers voted in favor of a rate cut than at the BOE's previous meeting, however the number remained low with just two policymakers. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 hit a fresh record high following the news and was last up 0.3%.
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Ferrovial, Telefonica, EDP, Enel, Pirelli and Salvatore Ferragamo all reported Thursday.
Elsewhere, shares of Spanish bank Sabadell rose 3% after rival BBVA made a hostile takeover offer to its shareholders, valuing the business at roughly 12 billion euros ($12.9 billion). Sabadell's board rejected an unsolicited all-share merger offer earlier this week.
China stocks rose overnight as its imports surged past estimates and exports rose in line with expectations, while the broader Asia-Pacific market was mixed.
Money Report
Meanwhile, U.S. stocks were higher on Thursday morning stateside as fresh data bolstered investors' hopes of easier Federal Reserve policy later this year.
AI will take time to monetize, London and Capital's head of equities says
Roger Jones, head of equities at London and Capital, on Thursday discussed the long-term view on investing around artificial intelligence.
"I think in the near term, quite often what you see from investors is they overestimate the possibilities. But actually in the longer term they tend to underestimate the possibilities, and we saw that with dotcom and the internet, very similar sort of phenomenon that we've seen. I think with AI, it's going to take a while to monetize," he told CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe."
Bank of England holds interest rates, signals rate cut is coming
The Bank of England on Thursday said it would leave interest rates unchanged, keeping the key rate at 5.25%, in line with expectations.
But the central bank also signaled that a rate cut is coming, with two out of nine Monetary Policy Committee members voting to cut rates, compared to one at the previous meeting.
Restrictive monetary policy was working to ease inflation, even as indicators of inflation persistence "remain elevated," the BOE suggested.
— Sophie Kiderlin
BOE set to hold rates as traders weigh up summer cuts
The Bank of England is set to announce a hold in interest rates at midday, while traders are preparing to pore over the details of Governor Andrew Bailey's messaging as anticipation builds for a potential summer rate cut.
Money market pricing suggests just under a 50% probability of a June cut, building to 80% in August, and a total reduction of 50 basis points this year.
Francesco Garzarelli, head of research at Eisler Capital, said investors would be paying attention to the split of votes from the nine voting members of the BOE's Monetary Policy Committee for clues on the path ahead. The most recent March meeting saw eight votes to hold and one to cut.
"Bailey's commentary will be important, and the outlook forecast," Garzarelli told CNBC on Thursday.
Read more here.
— Jenni Reid
Telefonica shares dip despite consensus beat
Telefonica shares were slightly lower in morning trade, after the Spanish telecom firm reported a 79% jump in net profit to 532 million euros ($571 million) in the first quarter.
Both net profit and revenue came in above an analyst consensus published by the company, according to Reuters.
The firm also confirmed a cash dividend of 0.3 euros, to be paid across December 2024 and June 2025.
— Jenni Reid
Europe stocks open mixed
European equity markets were mixed early Thursday, as the recent flurry of earnings slowed and markets braced themselves for new messaging on the path of interest rates from the Bank of England.
The regional Stoxx 600 was down 0.06%, though major bourses were in the green, with Germany's DAX up 0.3%. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 and France's CAC 40 were slightly above the flatline.
— Jenni Reid
Spanish bank BBVA makes hostile bid for Sabadell after board rejection
Spanish bank BBVA on Thursday presented a hostile takeover offer to shareholders of rival Banco Sabadell, three days after an all-share merger was rejected by Sabadell's board.
Spain's second-largest bank reiterated its offer of one BBVA share for every 4.83 Sabadell shares, a 30% premium over both banks' closing prices on April 29.
The offer is an "exceptionally favorable proposal," BBVA said in a statement.
"The transaction has very positive financial impacts thanks to relevant synergies and the complementarity and excellence of both banks. The operation will create one of the best banks in Europe, with a loan market share close to 22 percent in Spain," the bank added.
— Jenni Reid
China stocks extend gains after upbeat April trade data
Mainland China's CSI 300 index rose nearly 1%, extending gains after opening 0.2% higher, as the country's customs agency released upbeat trade data.
While April imports topped estimates, exports rose in line with expectations.
China's imports climbed 8.4% in April, compared with Reuters poll estimate of a 4.8% year-on-year rise. Exports rose 1.5% year on year in April in U.S. dollar terms, meeting expectations.
Exports and imports had both declined year on year in March.
— Shreyashi Sanyal, Evelyn Cheng
CNBC Pro: 'Biggest investment opportunity': Investment manager names stocks to play the copper market
Copper has been on fire, touching $10,000 per ton this week.
Will McDonough CEO of merchant bank Corestone Capital says he has "not seen this level of interest and conversation on copper."
"Copper is going through some serious spikes and prices are likely to be much higher in the future. I think it is the biggest investment opportunity right now," he told CNBC Pro, naming stocks he is betting on right now.
CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.
— Amala Balakrishner
CNBC Pro: When Nvidia shares rise — these 4 global stocks have tended to rise too, according to recent history
Four stocks in the Stoxx Europe 600 tend to rise when Nvidia shares fall, according to an analysis of recent data by CNBC Pro.
The share price performance of these four stocks is correlated to the chip maker's over the past year.
CNBC Pro subscribers can read more about the six stocks here.
— Ganesh Rao
European markets: Here are the opening calls
European markets are expected to open higher Thursday.
The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index is expected to open 32 points higher at 8,365, Germany's DAX up 25 points at 18,510, France's CAC 7 points higher at 8,143 and Italy's FTSE MIB up 59 points at 33,908, according to data from IG.
Earnings are due from Ferrovial, Telefonica, EDP, Enel, Pirelli and Salvatore Ferragamo.
— Holly Ellyatt
