Tech shares lead European market gains

European stocks rose today, Thursday, led by technology and real estate stocks, while focus shifted to the European Central Bank’s interest rate decision, a day after the Federal Reserve (US Central Bank) approved its progress in curbing runaway inflation.

According to “Reuters”, the European Stoxx 600 index rose 0.5 percent at 0806 GMT, as interest rate-sensitive technology shares jumped 2.7 percent and real estate shares jumped 1.8 percent.

The European Central Bank is all but certain to raise interest rates again on Thursday and pencil in more hikes for the next few months, with the only open question being how big these will be. The Bank of England is also preparing to raise interest rates by 50 basis points later on Thursday.

Telecom Italia shares jumped 9 percent to the top of the Stoxx 600 after receiving a non-binding offer for a controlling stake in its fixed-line network from a US investment firm.

Shares in Frankfurt-listed Meta Platforms rose 18 percent amid optimistic expectations about first-quarter revenue and $40 billion share buybacks.

Microchip supply Infineon shares rose 6.8 percent after raising its forecast for 2023, while French software maker Dassault Systems rose 4.1 percent on expectations of strong revenue growth in 2023.