European stocks up after two days of losses

European stocks rose today, Thursday, led by shares of media and travel companies, as signs of declining US inflation gave some relief to investors worried about the impact of the monetary tightening policy applied by the Federal Reserve (the US central bank).

According to “Reuters”, the European Stoxx 600 index rose 0.5 percent by 0822 GMT, after losing it for two consecutive days.

On Wall Street, the Nasdaq index touched its highest level in more than eight months on Wednesday, supported by a slightly smaller-than-expected increase in inflation figures for April, which revived hopes that the Federal Reserve would halt the cycle of interest rate hikes in June.

ENG Group shares rose 2.9 percent after the largest Dutch bank reported better-than-expected first-quarter earnings and announced a new share buyback program worth up to 1.5 billion euros ($1.65 billion).

Meanwhile, Bayer shares fell 5 percent, as the German group said that it is likely that its results will come at the lower end of a target range it expected for 2023, affected by cost inflation and other factors.

Shares of mining and automobile companies led the declines among the European sectors, following the trading of shares of many companies, including Volkswagen, without the right to cash dividends.