Investing.com - European stocks were higher on Thursday, as speculation over the possibility of additional easing measures by the European Central Bank lent support.
During European morning trade, the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 added 0.13%, France’s CAC 40 edged up 0.07%, while Germany’s DAX rose 0.27%.
European equities found some support after ECB President Mario Draghi said on Wednesday that the bank will keep its monetary policy "accommodative" for as long as needed, and will use every tool at its disposal to fight deflation.
"Monetary policy will remain accommodating for a long time and I can tell you that the Governing Council is unanimous in committing itself to using the tools at its disposal to bring inflation back to just under 2%."
The comments came after data showed that Germany's Ifo business confidence index deteriorated for the fifth successive month in September, adding to fears that the euro zone’s largest economy is losing momentum.
Financial stocks were broadly higher, as French lenders BNP Paribas (PARIS:BNPP) and Societe Generale (PARIS:SOGN) gained 0.45% and 1.32%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank (XETRA:DBKGn) rose 0.29%.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy's Unicredit (MILAN:CRDI) and Intesa Sanpaolo (MILAN:ISP) advanced 0.20% and 0.66% respectively, while Spanish banks Banco Santander (MADRID:SAN) and BBVA (MADRID:BBVA) added 0.23% and 0.40%.
Elsewhere, Air France-KLM (PARIS:AIRF) surged 2.91% after the airliner withdrew a plan to set up a low-cost subsidiary, removing the cause for a strike by its French pilots.
In London, FTSE 100 added 0.13%, supported by Direct Line Insurance, up 3.03% after agreeing to sell its international division to Spain's Mapfre (MADRID:MAP) for €550 million.
Cairn Energy (LONDON:CNE) added to gains, with shares rallying 1.94% as the company signed an agreement for the stake sale in the Catcher development. Dyas UK will reportedly buy 10% by funding Cairn’s exploration and development activities for as much as $182 million.
Meanwhile, financial stocks were mostly higher as Barclays (LONDON:BARC) rose 0.36% and Lloyds Banking (LONDON:LLOY) jumped 1.07%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland (LONDON:RBS) rallied 1.20%. HSBC Holdings (LONDON:HSBA) underperformed however, down 0.14%.
In the mining sector, stocks were sharply lower. Shares in Rio Tinto (LONDON:RIO) lost 0.94% and Glencore Xstrata (LONDON:GLEN) dropped 0.99%, while rivals Fresnillo (LONDON:FRES) and Randgold Resources (LONDON:RRS) plummeted 1.71% and 2.59% respectively.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a moderately lower open. The Dow 30 futures pointed to a 0.09% loss, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.12% decline, while the NASDAQ 100 futures indicated a 0.09% fall.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release data on durable goods orders, as well as the weekly report on jobless claims.