Investing.com - European stocks were higher on Thursday, as concerns over a potential U.K. split slightly eased, while markets continued to monitor Western sanction decisions on Russia.
During European morning trade, the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 added 0.17%, France’s CAC 40 edged up 0.12%, while Germany’s DAX rose 0.33%.
European equities found some support after a new opinion poll on Scottish independence on Wednesday showed that support for the no campaign was back in the lead with 53% of voters.
The poll came after a number of recent polls indicated that support for Scottish pro-independence voters had increased ahead of the September 18 referendum.
Sentiment was also boosted after Bank of England Governor Mark Carney indicated that U.K. interest rates are likely to rise in the coming months.
Meanwhile, the U.S. said it is close to imposing the toughest round of energy sanctions so far on Russia. The sanctions would reportedly ban energy companies from working with Russia on future oil exploration in the Russian Arctic, deep seas and shale rock formations.
Financial stocks were broadly higher, as French lenders BNP Paribas (PARIS:BNPP) and Societe Generale (PARIS:SOGN) rose 0.37% and 0.65%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank (XETRA:DBKGn) advanced 0.66%.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo (MILAN:ISP) and Unicredit (MILAN:CRDI) gained 0.57% and 0.75% respectively, while Spanish bank BBVA (MADRID:BBVA) edged up 0.09%.
Spain's biggest lender, Banco Santander (MADRID:SAN), slipped 0.27% after Ana Patricia Botin chosen to succeed her father Emilio Botin as chairman.
Elsewhere, Telecom Italia (MILAN:TLIT) rose 0.38% amid reports the company is considering creating a new unit to oversee its Latin American business.
In London, FTSE 100 edged up 0.10%, supported by gains in the financial sector.
Shares in Barclays (LONDON:BARC) climbed 0.43% and Lloyds Banking (LONDON:LLOY) jumped 1.04%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland (LONDON:RBS) saw shares surge 2.15%. HSBC Holdings (LONDON:HSBA) underperformed however, down 0.31%.
Morrison Supermarkets (LONDON:MRW) led gains on the index, rallying 2.58% after the supermarket chain reported a 51% fall in underlying half year profits to £181 million, due to a big drop in sales.
Meanwhile, mining stocks were on the downside. Glencore Xstrata (LONDON:GLEN) slid 0.39% and Bhp Billiton (LONDON:BLT) dropped 0.51%, while rivals Rio Tinto (LONDON:RIO) and Antofagasta (LONDON:ANTO) declined 0.67% and 0.71% respectively.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a steady open. The Dow 30 futures pointed to a 0.07% loss, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.08% fall, while the NASDAQ 100 futures indicated a 0.01% downtick.