FX.co ★ European Stocks Hold Gains

European stocks exhibited a mixed performance on Thursday, largely maintaining momentum from three consecutive days of gains. Investor sentiment was bolstered by the anticipation of another rate cut by the US Federal Reserve, driving demand for equities in major economies. The Eurozone's STOXX 50 remained steady, closing at 5,655, while the pan-European STOXX 600 saw a slight increase, closing at 575. Futures markets continued to reflect a consensus on a Fed rate cut in the upcoming month, influenced by dovish comments from key members of the Federal Open Market Committee. In addition, market risk this week was influenced by the ongoing possibility of a ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia. Banking stocks had a positive session, extending their weekly gains, with BNP Paribas and ING rising by 1.5% and 0.5%, respectively. Conversely, technology shares experienced volatility due to uncertainties concerning the sector's speculative excess and market share dynamics, particularly in graphics processing units (GPUs) from Nvidia and tensor processing units (TPUs) from Alphabet. ASML and Prosus each declined by over 2%, while Infineon advanced by 2.6%.