British News Agency

In London, the pan-European Stoxx 600 index opened up 0.38%. The UK’s FTSE index rose 0.43% shortly after the opening bell, while Germany’s DAX gained 0.44%, France’s CAC 40 climbed 0.30%, and Italy’s FTSE MIB advanced 0.63%.

It is expected to be a busy week for investors in Europe as the European Central Bank (ECB) is set to hold its final policy meeting of the year on Thursday. The bank is expected to keep interest rates at 2%.

Speaking to the Financial Times, ECB President Christine Lagarde said the central bank could raise its growth forecasts again in December after increasing its annual GDP growth forecast to 1.2% in September.

Other central banks, including the Bank of England, the Riksbank and Norges Bank, will also announce their final monetary policy decisions for 2025 this week. While the decision may be challenging, the Bank of England is expected to cut interest rates. Eurozone and UK inflation figures will also be released on Wednesday.

Fresenius rose 2.2%, Banco Santander gained 1.5%, and Schneider Electric increased 1.3%, lifting the market. By contrast, Argenx fell 9%, while Sanofi lost more than 5% after its multiple sclerosis drug tolebrutinib failed to meet the primary endpoint in a clinical trial.

The EU leaders’ summit will be held in Brussels on Thursday, where financing for Ukraine will be discussed. As part of this, the use of frozen Russian assets to provide a €210 billion ($246 billion) loan to Kyiv is also on the agenda. Meanwhile, geopolitical developments remain in focus, and markets are closely monitoring peace talks on Ukraine. Meetings between the US delegation and President Zelenskyy are resuming in Berlin.