Strong gains in the European markets

European stocks closed higher on Monday, with investors less worried about the coronavirus’s Micron mutation earlier in the week as experts appeared cautiously optimistic, although there are still many unanswered questions.

The leading US epidemiologist, o Dr. Anthony Fauci speaking to CNN noted that the first signs of the spread of the Omicron mutation indicate that it may be less dangerous than the Delta strain. “So far, the signs of seriousness are a bit encouraging,” he said.

Meanwhile, vaccine deliveries to EU countries are growing steadily and vaccination is progressing, with industry launching work to address new variants. The first estimates, moreover, are that existing vaccines also offer some protection against the latter mutation.

A South African health official also said the strain was a mild form of the infection.

In this climate, the pan-European Stoxx 600 strengthened by 1.3% to 468.71 points. The travel and leisure sector rallied, with the index gaining 3.9% in the best session since May.

The German DAX gained 1.4% and climbed to 15,380.79 points, while the French CAC 40 gained 1.5% to 6,865.78 points. The British FTSE 100 jumped 1.7% to 7,232.28 points, in its best session since July 21.

In the region, the Italian FTSE MIB jumped 2.2% after Fitch announced that it had upgraded the country’s credit rating to “BBB” from “BBB-” as it expects further economic growth after the pandemic lockdowns. The Spanish IBEX 35 gained 2.4%.

At daytime, German orders for manufacturing fell in October, disproving estimates of a rise amid continuing problems in the supply chain, which is cutting back on factory activity.

Manufacturing orders fell 6.9% month-on-month in October on adjusted terms, following a revised 1.8% increase in September, according to Destatis. Economists expected orders to increase by 0.5%.