Investing.com - European stocks opened sharply higher on Thursday, as investors awaited the European Central Bank's upcoming rate decision, to be followed by a press conference.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 advanced 1.10%, France’s CAC 40 climbed 1.15%, while Germany’s DAX 30 rallied 1.38%.
European equities gained ground although ongoing concerns over the outlook for global economic growth continued to create volatility on global markets.
Later Thursday, the ECB was expected to leave interest rates unchanged at 0.05%.
Financial stocks were broadly higher, as French lenders BNP Paribas (PARIS:BNPP) and Societe Generale (PARIS:SOGN) rallied 1.06% and 0.93%, while Germany's Commerzbank (XETRA:CBKG) and Deutsche Bank (XETRA:DBKGn) rose 0.11% and 0.99%.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo (MILAN:ISP) and Unicredit (MILAN:CRDI) climbed 0.74% and 0.83% respectively, while Spanish banks BBVA (MADRID:BBVA) and Banco Santander (MADRID:SAN) gained 0.48% and 0.62%.
Elsewhere, Swiss agriculture company Syngenta AG (SIX:SYNN) surged 2.48% after announcing a $2 billion share buyback and the sale of its vegetable seeds business.
On the downside, Vivendi (PARIS:VIV) SA edged down 0.14% after reporting quarterly net income below analysts' projections.
In London, FTSE 100 jumped 1.40%, led by easyJet (LONDON:EZJ), whose shares soared 6.87% after the airliner upgraded its profit forecasts for 2015, thanks to record August traffic.
Mining stocks were also sharply higher, as Bhp Billiton (LONDON:BLT) climbed 1.60% and Fresnillo (LONDON:FRES) advanced 1.92%, while Rio Tinto (LONDON:RIO) and Glencore (LONDON:GLEN) rallied 2.32% and 4.23% respectively.
Financial stocks added to gains. Shares in Lloyds Banking (LONDON:LLOY) were up 0.92% and HSBC Holdings (LONDON:HSBA) jumped 1.07%, while Barclays (LONDON:BARC) and the Royal Bank of Scotland (LONDON:RBS) surged 1.24% and 2.22% respectively.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.28% rise, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.29% gain, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.36% increase.