Europe stocks rise on rate cut hopes, Eurozone data

The FTSE 100 added 0.3 per cent to end at 7,635 points, the CAC 40 gained 0.1 per cent to 7,577 points, the DAX jumped 0.6 per cent to 16,746 and Stoxx 600 jumped 0.4 per cent

The FTSE and European stocks closed higher this Tuesday amid investor optimism around rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, European Central Bank and Bank of England in 2024 and positive inflation data coming out of the Eurozone.

The FTSE 100 added 0.3 per cent to end at 7,635 points, while the CAC 40 gained 0.1 per cent to 7,577 points. In Germany, the DAX jumped 0.6 per cent to 16,746. Europe’s Stoxx 600 jumped 0.4 per cent.

In the US, stocks edged up, with an eighth weekly win still within reach as investors stayed hopeful about the prospect of interest rate cuts in spite of warnings those hopes are overdone.

The Dow Jones added 0.6 per cent to 37,529 points. The S&P 500 increased 0.5 per cent to 4,762 points and the NASDAQ jumped 0.5 per cent to 14,975.

The US Federal Reserve now sees 75 bps of rate cuts coming in 2024, which accounts for one more rate cut than had been projected in September. That helped drive a rally in US stocks with the Dow touching a record and the major indexes posting a seventh-consecutive winning week.

In Asia, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 jumped 1.4 per cent to 33,219 points after the Bank of Japan maintained its super-loose monetary policy, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong shed 0.7 per cent to 16,512. The Shanghai Composite closed flat at 2,932 points.

The pound was marginally up against the dollar, with sterling trading at $1.2756.

Sterling was also higher against the euro, trading at €1.1616.

Meantime, Brent crude was higher, trading at nearly $79 per barrel as oil tankers avoid the Red Sea after heightened attacks in the region which have disrupted international shipping routes.