FRANKFURT: European shares scaled a new record high on Thursday, boosted by technology and financial stocks as investors assessed several positive earnings updates and signs of resilience in the German economy.
The pan-European STOXX 600 advanced 0.5 percent to 614.57 points. Technology stocks gained 2.3 percent and hovered at levels last seen in 2000, while financial services jumped 2.2 percent.
Top chip equipment maker ASML shares soared 11.2 percent to a record and surpassed the USD500 billion market value mark, after strong earnings from TSMC, the world’s main producer of advanced AI chips, buoyed sentiment across the semiconductor industry.
Adding to the optimism, VAT Group reported better-than-expected preliminary Q4 results, sending shares of the semiconductor supplier up 14 percent to their highest since July 2024.
“Europe is behind on the capital expenditure when it comes to AI infrastructure. There are bottlenecks that we have to be aware of, but there is almost certainly a bigger role the European tech industry can play when it comes to AI,” said Shaan Raithatha, a senior economist at Vanguard’s Investment Strategy Group.
Financials were boosted by strong updates from British money manager Schroders and Swiss private equity firm Partners Group. Schroders jumped 9.8 percent after it said improved fees would help annual profit surpass estimates, while Partners Group rose 7.6 percent following a disclosure that it had received USD30 billion in new assets last year.
The STOXX index has logged gains in seven of the last 10 sessions this year, underpinned by gains in defence and commodity sectors as geopolitical tensions simmered. The index has also outperformed the US benchmark S&P 500 so far this year.
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