Investing.com - European stocks opened sharply higher on Friday, as market sentiment broadly strengthened after the Federal Reserve announced a fresh round of quantitative easing to shore up U.S. growth.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 surged 1.90%, France’s CAC 40 rallied 1.82%, while Germany’s DAX 30 jumped 1.49%.
The Fed announced on Thursday that it would buy USD40 billion of mortgage-backed securities every month and would keep buying them until the job market improves.
"We want to see lower unemployment. We want to see a stronger economy that can cause the improvement to be sustained," Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said following the central bank's two-day policy meeting.
Meanwhile, euro zone finance ministers were to hold informal talks in Cyprus about whether Spain should ask for financial support after the announcement of the European Central Bank's new bond-buying programme brought Madrid's borrowing costs sharply lower.
Financial stocks led gains, as shares in French lenders Societe Generale surged 3.22% and BNP Paribas advanced 3.18%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank rallied 2.95% and 2.73% respectively.
Peripheral lenders were also sharply higher, with Italian banks Unicredit and Intesa Sanpaolo advancing 2.81% and 2.03%, while Spain's BBVA and Banco Santander jumped 2.60% and 2.13%.
Mining stocks contributed to gains, led by France-based ArcelorMittal, up 5.95%, while auto makers also advanced, with German constructors Volkswagen and BMW rallying 3.91% and 3.02%.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 jumped 1.50%, boosted by sharp gains in mining and oil stocks.
Mining giants Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton gained 5.56% and 4.36% respectively, while steel manufacturer Evraz soared 8.56%.
Copper producers Xstrata and Kazakhmys also posted sharp gains, with shares surging 4.93% and 8.75%, while oil major Anglo American climbed 6.18%.
Elsewhere, U.K. lenders tracked their European counterparts higher, as shares in Barclays advanced 4.58% and the Royal Bank of Scotland rallied 3.58%, while Lloyds Banking and HSBC Holdings climbed 2.65% and 1.72%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.24% rise, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.22% increase, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.27% gain.
Later in the day, official data was to be published on consumer price inflation in the euro zone, while European Union finance ministers were to hold a first day of talks in Brussels.
The U.S. was to publish official reports on consumer price inflation, retail sales and business inventories. The University of Michigan was also to produce preliminary reports on consumer sentiment and inflation expectations.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 surged 1.90%, France’s CAC 40 rallied 1.82%, while Germany’s DAX 30 jumped 1.49%.
The Fed announced on Thursday that it would buy USD40 billion of mortgage-backed securities every month and would keep buying them until the job market improves.
"We want to see lower unemployment. We want to see a stronger economy that can cause the improvement to be sustained," Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said following the central bank's two-day policy meeting.
Meanwhile, euro zone finance ministers were to hold informal talks in Cyprus about whether Spain should ask for financial support after the announcement of the European Central Bank's new bond-buying programme brought Madrid's borrowing costs sharply lower.
Financial stocks led gains, as shares in French lenders Societe Generale surged 3.22% and BNP Paribas advanced 3.18%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank rallied 2.95% and 2.73% respectively.
Peripheral lenders were also sharply higher, with Italian banks Unicredit and Intesa Sanpaolo advancing 2.81% and 2.03%, while Spain's BBVA and Banco Santander jumped 2.60% and 2.13%.
Mining stocks contributed to gains, led by France-based ArcelorMittal, up 5.95%, while auto makers also advanced, with German constructors Volkswagen and BMW rallying 3.91% and 3.02%.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 jumped 1.50%, boosted by sharp gains in mining and oil stocks.
Mining giants Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton gained 5.56% and 4.36% respectively, while steel manufacturer Evraz soared 8.56%.
Copper producers Xstrata and Kazakhmys also posted sharp gains, with shares surging 4.93% and 8.75%, while oil major Anglo American climbed 6.18%.
Elsewhere, U.K. lenders tracked their European counterparts higher, as shares in Barclays advanced 4.58% and the Royal Bank of Scotland rallied 3.58%, while Lloyds Banking and HSBC Holdings climbed 2.65% and 1.72%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.24% rise, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.22% increase, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.27% gain.
Later in the day, official data was to be published on consumer price inflation in the euro zone, while European Union finance ministers were to hold a first day of talks in Brussels.
The U.S. was to publish official reports on consumer price inflation, retail sales and business inventories. The University of Michigan was also to produce preliminary reports on consumer sentiment and inflation expectations.