Investing.com -
Investing.com - European stocks were higher in quiet trade on Monday, as last week's announcement by the European Central Bank of a fresh round of stimulus measures continued to support equity markets.
During European morning trade, the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 rose 0.26%, France's CAC 40 inched 0.06% higher, while Germany's DAX edged up 0.10%.
European equities found support after the ECB last Thursday cut the main refinancing rate in the euro area to a record low 0.15% and imposed negative deposit rates on commercial lenders, in a bid to stimulate lending to businesses.
The bank also implemented a new Long-Term Refinancing Operation, designed to help banks lend to small companies and said it would "intensify" its preparatory work on the 'asset-backed security' market.
The ECB acted after a report on Wednesday showed that the annual rate of inflation in the euro zone slowed to 0.5% in May, well below the bank's target of close to but just under 2%.
Financial stocks were broadly higher, as French lenders Societe Generale (PARIS:SOGN) and BNP Paribas (PARIS:BNPP) jumped 1.04% and 1.14%, while Germany's Commerzbank (XETRA:CBKG) rallied 1.38%.
Among peripheral lenders, Spanish banks BBVA (MADRID:BBVA) and Banco Santander (MADRID:SAN) gained 0.65% and 1.13% respectively, while Italy's Unicredit (MILAN:CRDI) and Intesa Sanpaolo (MILAN:ISP) surged 1.44% and 1.91%.
Elsewhere, Deutsche Telekom (XETRA:DTEGn) climbed 0.49% after saying it may increase disclosure on government wiretapping after Vodafone (LONDON:VOD) last week released its law-enforcement transparency report. Deutsche Telekom has 145 million wireless customers in Europe and the U.S.
In London, FTSE 100 added 0.21%, supported by gains in the financial sector.
Shares in HSBC Holdings (LONDON:HSBA) edged up 0.17% and Barclays (LONDON:BARC) jumped 1.04%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland (LONDON:RBS) rallied 1.28%. Lloyds Banking (LONDON:LLOY) underperformed however, sliding 0.85%.
Mining stocks were also on the upside, as Glencore Xstrata (LONDON:GLEN) gained 0.37% and Rio Tinto (LONDON:RIO) rose 0.36%, while rivals Vedanta Resources (LONDON:VED) and Bhp Billiton (LONDON:BLT) advanced 0.60% and 0.74% respectively.
Vodafone added to gains, up 0.91%, in the wake of its law-enforcement transparency report published last week in which it says 29 governments from Albania to the U.K. asked for access to its network or user data.
Meanwhile, Centrica (LONDON:CNA) declined 0.55% amid reports the energy provider is in talks with Qatar for cooperation in some U.K. projects.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a moderately lower open. The Dow 30futures pointed to a 0.08% loss, S&P 500futures signaled a 0.11% decline, while the Nasdaq 100futures indicated a 0.09% fall.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.