Investing.com - European stocks opened higher on Friday, helped by a rebound in oil prices and as investors continued to digest a string of recent central bank statements,while worries over the upcoming vote on a potential British exit from the European Union, or Brexit, temporarily eased.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 rallied 1.80%, France’s CAC 40 advanced 0.48%, while Germany’s DAX 30 jumped 1.36%.
The Federal Reserve, the Bank of Japan and the Bank of England all chose this week to leave their monetary policies unchanged and cited the possibility of a Brexit as currently being the largest risk for financial markets.
However, campaigning for the British referendum was halted late Thursday, after a pro-EU British lawmaker, Jo Cox, was shot to death while meeting with constituents.
Meanwhile, oil prices moved higher on Friday after six consecutive sessions in the red, lending support to energy-related stocks.
French oil and gas major Total SA (PA:TOTF) jumped 1.17% and Italy’s ENI (MI:ENI) rallied 1.21%, while Norwegian rival Statoil (OL:STL) surged 1.99%.
Financial stocks added to gains, as French lenders BNP Paribas (PA:BNPP) and Societe Generale (PA:SOGN) soared 2.99% and 3.58%, while Germany’s Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) and Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn) climbed 0.96% and 3.15%.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy’s Intesa Sanpaolo (MI:ISP) and Unicredit (MI:CRDI) advanced 2.77% and 3.72% respectively, while Spanish banks BBVA (MC:BBVA) and Banco Santander (MC:SAN) gained 2.44% and 2.92%.
Elsewhere, shares in German insurance company Allianz (DE:ALVG) rallied 1.43% after its Allianz Risk Transfer and Nephila Capital Limited said on Wednesday that they had “successfully piloted the use of blockchain smart contract technology for transacting a natural catastrophe swap.”
In London, FTSE 100 jumped 1.02%, as U.K. lenders tracked their European counterparts sharply higher.
HSBC Holdings (LON:HSBA) gained 0.87% and the Royal Bank of Scotland (LON:RBS) climbed 3.45%, while Lloyds Banking (LON:LLOY) and Barclays (LON:BARC) soared 3.89% and 4.02% respectively.
Sports Direct (LON:SPD) was one of the top performers on the index, with shares up 4.04% even as the retail giant was asked on Thursday to clarify its advertising after the regulator banned “misleading” and “unsubstantiated” savings claims.
The company’s website had advertised a Puma Arsenal home shirt for £42 in February, claiming the price represented a saving of £17.99, but a reader said the product had never been sold on at £59.99 on the site.
Meanwhile, mining stocks were mixed on the commodity-heavy index. Shares in Glencore (LON:GLEN) rose 0.20% and Rio Tinto (LON:RIO) advanced 0.95%, while Fresnillo (LON:FRES) lost 2.68% and Randgold (LON:RRS) ressources dove 4.33%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a steady to higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.05% uptick, S&P 500 futures a 0.01% dip, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.09% gain.