LONDON — European stocks closed higher on Thursday as investors digested the Federal Reserve's latest comments on the future path of interest rates.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 index ended 0.35% higher, with major bourses and most sectors in the green. Retail stocks added 1.22%, while mining stocks fell by 1.07%. The Stoxx has regained positive momentum over the last two sessions after faltering on Tuesday.
Shares of Swiss Re rose 4.5% after the insurer reported a 16% rise in first-half net profits to $2.09 billion. Meanwhile, Aegon shares fell 7% after reporting a net loss of 65 million euros ($72.41 million) in the first half of this year.
The British pound jumped to a 13-month high of $1.3127 during morning trade, after fresh data showed an increase in U.K. business activity. However, it had slipped to $1.3089 by late afternoon, slightly down on the previous day.
PMI data for the euro zone meanwhile showed an uptick in business activity over the month, even as wage growth eased, paving the way for a potential September rate cut from the European Central Bank.
Minutes from the ECB's last meeting released Thursday showed that policymakers were in no rush to cut rates in July but that they saw September as the next best opportunity to consider a further easing.
Fed minutes released Wednesday also showed that officials had moved closer to a long-awaited interest rate cut during their July meeting, with the vast majority of participants agreeing that a reduction was "likely" come September if the data "continued to come in as expected."
Money Report
U.S. stocks were treading water early Thursday as investors looked ahead to Fed Chair Jerome Powell's speech at Jackson Hole, Wyoming on Friday.
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In Asia, markets were mixed as investors digested business activity data from Australia and Japan and awaited PMI numbers from India.
