European stocks achieved record highs on Thursday, driven by the Swiss central bank’s decision to cut interest rates and the indication that the Bank of England will follow suit. These actions sparked positive sentiment among investors. Investor perceptions regarding the European Central Bank’s (ECB) policy also changed, with projections of a 90% likelihood of an ECB interest rate decrease by June, up from aprevious estimate of an 80% chance.
The broad European Stoxx 600 index concluded the day up by 0.9%, breaking previous records for both close and intraday peak, which reached 510.25 points.
In Dublin, the Iseq All-Share index rose by 0.4% to 9,902.68. Banking shares such as AIB and Bank of Ireland saw significant gains of 5.1% and 3.5% respectively. Since the ECB commenced rate increases in July 2022, boosting net interest income, investors have shifted focus to the potential economic boost from a proposed reduction in borrowing costs.
Housing stocks were also favourable, as Cairn Homes saw a 1.9% rise to €1.64 while Glenveagh Properties rose by 1.4% to €1.27.
In the UK, stocks were on the rise, with the FTSE 100 index surging by as much as 2%. The rise was propelled by the Bank of England’s decision to hold borrowing costs constant, while signalling potential upcoming interest rate cuts. The FTSE 100 closed at its highest point since May 2023, helped by a 4.5% surge in the investment banking sector and a decline in the pound against the dollar.
The Bank of England’s decision to maintain a 5.25% interest rate while forecasting an inflation drop below the 2% target in the second quarter only further fuelled investor enthusiasm.
Next experienced a record-breaking 6.7% growth following an outperforming profit increase for 2023-24. Tritax Big Box also saw a rise of 2.7 percent after the company’s board and that of the UK Commercial Property confirmed they were in agreement over a £924 million (€1.08 billion) deal. However, the Dowlais Group’s shares plummeted nearly 10 percent, with the owner of GKN Automotive projecting revenues on par with those of 2023.
European technology stocks led the way with a 3.2% leap, with investors favoring riskier assets after the US Federal Reserve maintained its position of three interest rate reductions this year. A strong revenue forecast for the third quarter from US chipmaker Micron boosted European semiconductor stocks, including ASML Holding. In addition, the basic resources index, featuring mining stocks, gained 2.6 percent given the rising prices of several metals, with gold prices notably reaching a historical high at one point.
On the economic front, France saw business activity contract for a straight tenth month in March, whereas in Germany, economic slump saw some relief.
Over in New York, major stock indexes hit record highs during midday trade, propelled by a rally in chip stocks spurred by Micron Technology’s optimistic outlook. Fellow chip manufacturers such as Intel and Nvidia also saw gains. US stock indexes closed at a higher mark on Wednesday, following the decision by central bankers not to adjust borrowing costs and their commitment to lowering interest rates by 0.75% by 2024 year-end.
Ingenium Analytic’s President, Andre Bakhos, opined that the market is eager for information that can fuel further growth, namely the potential interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, and AI’s future benefits. However, Apple’s shares fell after being sued for monopolistic practices in the smartphone market by the Justice Department, under the Biden administration’s first significant antitrust action against them.