gained just under 1 per cent to end the day at €11.79, but volumes were lower than normal.Britain’s FTSE 100 outpaced peers after a Christmas holiday, as China’s dismantling of Covid-19 restrictions pushed miners and banks higher, while the index still remained cautious of surging cases.Miners gained 0.5 per cent, tracking rising copper prices after top-consumer China’s easing boosted hopes of improving demand.
Airlines like Wizz Air and EasyJet slipped 4.1 per cent and 2.3 per cent respectively, after Italy’s antitrust regulator opened an inquiry into possible price-fixing. The region-wide STOXX 600 dipped 0.1 per cent, European miners added 0.6 per cent as copper prices rallied on hopes of a demand recovery in the world’s second-largest economy after China further eased its stringent Covid curbs on Monday.Meanwhile, the STOXX 600 was headed for an annual loss of more than 12 per cent as concerns about an economic recession due to aggressive monetary policy tightening by central banks globally weighed on the European index.
The S&P 500 coughed up an early advance, with sentiment worsening on concern that the end of China’s zero-Covid policy could lead to a rise in cases around the world. Trading volumes were about 20 per cent below the 30-day average at this time of day.