Oil prices remained choppy in early morning trading, and the thin volume of trades caused European stocks to close flat on Thursday. The Stoxx 600 closed the day down 0.04%, while the CAC 40 closed down 0.14%.
Germany’s DAX was closed for the day, but ended Wednesday up, rallying 2.28%. The FTSE 100 rose just 0.31% on the day. Euro Stoxx 50 is also at 2.27% on the day.
European energy stocks were at the front of the gains on Thursday, with Statoil ASA (STL-NO) up 5.22% on the day. The company, based out of Norway, received news that a judge has finally ruled in the company’s favor that it did not breach its contract with Diamond Offshore Drilling (DO). Diamond’s stock is down 0.83% on the news.
Mining stocks also experienced good news following the bank of China’s decision to implement further fiscal easing measures. China is one of the biggest consumers of copper, and Boliden (BOL-SE) surged on the news, up 7.71% at close.
BNP Paribas (BNP), France’s largest bank, ended the day down 0.8%. The bank announced plans on Wednesday that they are considering selling their First Hawaiian Bank unit, and that their fourth-quarter results will be hit with a €0.9 billion charge due to the company’s Italian BNL unit.
