Investing.com – Spain’s index rallied on Wednesday as fears of Catalan independence receded.
The IBEX 35 rose 1.54% as of 4:35 AM ET (9:35 GMT) after a week and half of volatility.
On Tuesday Catalan President Carles Puigdemont signed a document proclaiming the region's independence from Spain, but he suspended the declaration in order to talk with the Spanish government, which says the declaration is illegal.
A response from the Spanish government is expected on Wednesday.
The rally in stocks was driven by the financial sector. Many institutions based in Catalan have made plans to move out of the region, including Catalan-based banks B. Sabadell and Caixabank.
B. Sabadell (MC:SABE) jumped 2.10% while Caixabank SA (MC:CABK) increased 1.85%. Financial conglomerate BBVA (MC:BBVA) rose 1.68% and banking giant Santander (MC:SAN) was up 1.34%, while Bankia SA (MC:BKIA) expanded 1.28%. Bankinter (MC:BKT) inched forward 0.68%.
Meanwhile the lowest performers were supermarket chain Distribuidora Intl de Aliment (MC:DIDA), which fell 3.15%, and construction firm Tecnicas Reunidas (MC:TRE), which was down 0.62%.
Stocks were mixed in the rest of Europe. France’s CAC 40 fell 0.17%, while Germany’s DAX inched forward 0.03% and London’s FTSE 100 decreased 0.09%. The Euro Stoxx 50 edged forward 0.10%.
Currencies were also mixed on Wednesday morning. EUR/USD rose to 1.1836 while GBP/USD fell slightly to 1.3200 after a rally on Tuesday.
In commodities, gold futures fell to $1,292.17 an ounce while crude oil increased to $51.12 a barrel. The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, fell to 92.95.