European shares rose to their highest level in four months on Friday, led by gains in bank stocks, as investors said the European Central Bank's pledge to tackle the region's debt crisis had bought the area's troubled economies breathing space. Stronger-than-expected US jobs data on Friday also lifted sentiment towards equity markets.
The FTSEurofirst 300 index ended up 2.5 percent at 1,081.37 points, its highest close since finishing at 1,085.04 points on April 2. It also posted its ninth weekly gain in a row, extending its longest run of weekly rises since mid-2005. The Euro STOXX 50 index rose 4.8 percent to 2,372.58 points, marking its best finishing level since closing at 2,392.54 points on April 5.
The FTSEurofirst 300 fell 1.2 percent on Thursday after European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi initially disappointed some investors by not announcing any immediate actions to help lower the borrowing costs of debt-laden Spain and Italy. However, traders said on Friday that Draghi's comments that the ECB was ready to start buying government bonds nevertheless signified that new stimulus measures could arrive soon, giving a boost to the battered Spanish and Italian equity markets.
"It does give Spain and Italy an ultimate parachute should things go really ugly. This should be seen as a positive development," said Emanuel Arbib, head of Integrated Asset Management. A Reuters poll of nearly 50 economists taken after Draghi's news conference on Thursday showed that the ECB is now seen as beginning to buy Italian and Spanish bonds in September and cutting its main refinancing rate.
Spain's benchmark IBEX stockmarket index rose 6 percent, while Italy's FTSE MIB market advanced by 6.3 percent. Germany's DAX index rose 3.9 percent while France's CAC-40 index gained 4.4 percent. Banks, which have fallen sharply on concerns over their exposure to Europe's debt crisis, rallied and were the best performing European equity sector.
The STOXX European banking index rose 5.1 percent, with Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo surging 12.6 percent while France's Societe Generale rose 10.3 percent. Michel Juvet, chief investment officer at Swiss bank Bordier, said he was considering buying up more financial stocks in light of the ECB's latest pledges.
"We have a central bank who is the last resort, a sort of IMF (International Monetary Fund) creating short-term financing bridges for states in difficulties, and we will have funds to help these states manage their long-term issues," he said. Clairinvest fund manager Ion-Marc Valahu said equities could rally for a few months as they had done earlier this year after the ECB's injection of long-term, ultra-cheap loans in December, in a programme known as LTRO (long term refinancing operations).
German bund futures fell as much as 2 points, and Valahu said further declines in the bund could maintain buying interest in European equity markets. "I think we could get a squeeze higher like last December through to March this year after the LTROs. Bunds will give the direction, if they sell off hard then European equities will rally," said Valahu, who bought the DAX, CAC and Euro STOXX 50 indexes on Friday. But other traders said the equity rally could quickly fade away - as previous rallies have done - given European policymakers' disagreements over how to tackle the debt crisis, which led to a bailout of Greece and could worsen in Spain.
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