The European markets closed with gains, against the background of OPEC and macro

The major European stock markets closed with gains on Thursday, with investors turning their attention to the latest macroeconomic data, but also to the meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).

On the board, the pan-European Stoxx 600 gained 0.57%, to 441.24 points, with the construction and materials sector leading the profit with 2.1%, while the energy (oil and gas) sector recorded losses of 0.2%. The other pan-European index, Euro Stoxx 50gained 0.95%, to 3,795.13 points.

The German DAX gained 1.01%, to 14,485.17 points, with the French CAC 40 to increase by 1.27%, to 6,500.44, while the British FTSE 100 was closed due to a national holiday in the United Kingdom.

In the periphery, the Italian FTSE MIB gained 0.59%, to 24,426.50 points, while the Spanish IBEX 35 fell marginally by 0.04%, to 8,744.10.

European traders and investors are still assimilating preliminary data on inflation in the eurozone, which stood at 8.1% in May, exceeding expectations and reaching its seventh consecutive record high. Investors are monitoring the movements of the European Central Bank, mainly at the level of declarations, in order to have an idea of ​​the pace and range of interest rate hikes expected in the near future, in order to curb the rise in consumer prices.

The Russian bloody invasion of Ukraine is also in the spotlight, as the European Union announced a few days ago a partial embargo on Russian oil. At today’s OPEC + meeting, an agreement was reached to increase production by 648,000 barrels per day in July and August, in a move aimed at offsetting market shortfalls expected by Russia’s declining oil production as a result of some embargo on Russian crude decided by the European Union.

At the level of individual shares, that of Atos gained 8%. The French IT giant announced a partnership with British semiconductor design firm Arm and University College London on Wednesday.