China rally pushes STOXX 600 close to record highs

(Reuters) - European shares jumped on Thursday, buoyed by optimism in Asia following news that China is considering capital injections into its top banks, while investors awaited remarks from the European Central Bank's (ECB) president.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index was up 1% at 524.56 points by 0710 GMT, just shy of its record high of 526.66.

Technology and basic resources were the biggest boost to the benchmark index, gaining over 3% each. [MET/L]

Oil stocks were the biggest drag, losing 2.8% as oil prices fell on news of top exporter Saudi Arabia giving up its crude oil price target. [MET/L]

Meanwhile, a report said that China is considering injecting up to 1 trillion yuan ($142.39 billion) of capital into its top banks to increase their capacity in a bid to support its struggling economy.

Chinese leaders also pledged to support the economy through "forceful" interest rate cuts.

Luxury stocks also lifted the benchmark on the day, with LVMH and Hermes gaining over 4.3% each.

A slew of ECB board members are scheduled to speak later in the day, with comments from president Christine Lagarde taking centre-stage, due at 1330 GMT.



The Swiss National Bank is expected cut its interest rate by 25 basis points.

H&M (ST:HMb ) dropped 7.7% after the world's second-largest listed fashion retailer said it no longer expected to reach its full-year earnings margin goal, while reporting a lower-than-expected operating profit for the third quarter.

Source: Investing.com