LONDON — Europe’s markets were all on the rise Wednesday morning.
The FTSE MIB in Milan gained 1.6 percent to 22,697.52, followed by the CAC 40 in Paris, up 1.5 percent to 4,955.25. The DAX in Frankfurt advanced 1.2 percent to 11,643.33, while the FTSE 100 in London was up 0.2 percent to 6,714.67.
The rises came as the European Central Bank’s president Mario Draghi said at a conference earlier in the day that the ECB’s quantitative easing policy, which began Monday, is shielding euro-area countries from the ongoing issue of Greece’s debt crisis, Reuters reported. Draghi also forecast that the euro zone’s economy should “broaden and hopefully strengthen,” Reuters noted.
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Following the ECB’s latest round of quantitative easing, the euro on Wednesday fell to a 12-year low against the dollar and traded for $1.08 at 11.30 a.m. CET Wednesday.
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Fashion, luxury and retail stocks had an uneven start to the day.
Risers included Yoox Group, 2.6 percent to 21.15 euros; Aeffe, 2.4 percent to 2.39 euros, and Burberry, 2.5 percent to 18.62 pounds.
Boohoo.com climbed 6.9 percent to 0.27 pounds, after the online retailer said Wednesday that its revenue rose 27 percent in the year to Feb. 28 to 139.9 million pounds, with an EBITDA margin of approximately 10 percent. The firm also said it is seeking authorization to buy back up to 10 percent of the issued share capital in the business.
Stocks that fell included Hennes & Mauritz, 2.7 percent to 339.60 Swedish kronor; Safilo Group, 1.1 percent to 12.83 euros, and Brunello Cucinelli, 4.5 percent to 18.43 euros. The latter declined even as Brunello Cucinelli reported Tuesday that its profits gained 7.5 percent in the year to Dec. 31 to 31.8 million euros.
At 11:30 a.m. CET, the pound traded for $1.51.