By Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- European stock markets moved higher on
Thursday, as investors waited for policy decisions from the
European Central Bank and the Bank of England, with analysts
increasingly betting on a rate cut for the euro zone.
Climbing for a second day, the Stoxx Europe 600 index rose 0.3%
to 319.00.
Among notable movers, shares of Daimler AG added 2.2% after the
German car maker said it closed out 2013 with record earnings and
gave an upbeat outlook for 2014.
Danske Bank AS climbed 2.7% after the Danish lender proposed
paying a dividend for the first time in five years.
Akzo Nobel NV (AKZOY) rallied 4.6% after the Dutch paint and
coatings firm said it will continue to work on cutting costs to
offset expected soft demand in the year ahead.
On a more downbeat note, shares of H. Lundbeck AS dropped 4%
after the pharmaceutical firm trimmed its 2014 guidance as it
posted a sharp drop in fourth-quarter profit.
More broadly, central-bank meetings were the focal point for
Thursday. First, the Bank of England announces its latest
interest-rate decision at noon in London, or 7 a.m. Eastern Time.
Analysts widely expect the central bank to keep rates at a record
low of 0.5% and make no changes to its 375 billion pound ($611
billion) asset-purchase program.
At 12:45 p.m., the decision from the European Central Bank is
up, which could turn out to be more eventful. Economists are split
as to whether the ECB will cut its key lending rate from its
already record-low 0.25% to fight low inflation and tighter
money-market conditions. Some argue a rate cut would be premature,
while others believe the central bank is keen to be ahead of the
curve on inflation and therefore will ease policy further. ECB
President Mario Draghi's news conference starts at 1:30 p.m. in
London, 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time. Read: Showtime for the ECB: Will it
really cut rates?
Ahead of the decisions, most country-specific indexes traded
higher. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index gained 0.1% to 6,466.56, while
France's CAC 40 index put on 0.2% to 4,127.12. Germany's DAX 30
index rose 0.4% to 9,151.88.
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