European equities moved broadly higher on Thursday as investors digested central bank decisions from the European Central Bank and the Bank of England, while continuing to monitor geopolitical developments in the Middle East.
Strong earnings from major U.S. tech names including Alphabet, Amazon, Meta Platforms and Microsoft supported sentiment, although concerns lingered over Meta’s heavy investment in artificial intelligence.
The Bank of England held its benchmark rate steady but warned of potential second-round inflationary effects stemming from rising energy prices. Meanwhile, the European Central Bank also opted to leave interest rates unchanged.
On the macro front, weaker-than-expected German retail sales data for March and disappointing first-quarter GDP figures from France weighed on sentiment.
Inflation across the eurozone accelerated to 3.0% year-over-year in April, up from 2.6% in March and in line with expectations.
Oil prices remained elevated, with Brent crude for June trading near $122 per barrel following reports that U.S. Central Command has drawn up plans for a “short and powerful” series of strikes on Iran.
Major indices and stock movers
In terms of benchmarks, the FTSE 100 gained 1.6%, while Germany’s DAX rose 0.9% and France’s CAC 40 edged up 0.1%.
Among individual stocks, Puma (BIT:1PUM) climbed 2.8% after announcing a change in its chief financial officer.
Delivery Hero (TG:DHER) jumped 6% after reporting improved first-quarter growth in gross merchandise value.
Glencore (LSE:GLEN) gained nearly 2% after reaffirming its 2026 production outlook following broadly in-line quarterly output.
Unilever (LSE:ULVR) added 1.3% after launching a €1.5 billion share buyback program.
Standard Chartered (LSE:STAN) advanced 1.6% after reporting record first-quarter earnings.
Persimmon (LSE:PSN) rose 2.1% after maintaining its delivery and profit targets for 2026.
Rolls-Royce Holdings (LSE:RR.) surged 6% after expressing confidence in meeting its full-year guidance despite disruption from Middle East tensions.
Arcadis (EU:ARCAD) soared 11.5% after posting first-quarter results that exceeded expectations.
Air France-KLM (EU:AF) gained around 1% in Paris after narrowing its quarterly loss.
On the downside, Credit Agricole (EU:ACA) dropped 6.4% after reporting earnings below forecasts.
Other banks also came under pressure, with BNP Paribas (EU:BNP) falling 5.2% and Societe Generale (EU:GLE) declining 6.5% following their respective results.
Technip Energies (EU:TE) slid 8.6% after cutting its full-year outlook, citing disruptions linked to the Middle East conflict.
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