Mario Draghi’s vow to bring the eurozone’s low inflation rate back to target “without delay” offered some comfort to the region’s investors today.
The latest speech by the European Central Bank president repeated his pledge to consider a range of policies to revive the eurozone economy.
The Dax in Frankfurt rose by 1%, while the Cac40 in Paris was higher by 0.5% and the FTSE 100 Index lifted by 39.7 points to 6719.1.
The rally by London’s top flight was driven by the commodities sector after heavy losses earlier in the week. Tullow Oil set the pace in the FTSE 100 as the price of Brent crude crept back towards the $80 a barrel mark.
Other notable risers included Rolls-Royce after the engines giant secured an order from Delta Air Lines worth £3.2billion to power 50 Airbus planes.
The deal lifted Rolls shares 4.5p to 848.5p after a difficult few weeks in which it has announced plans for 2,600 job cuts and admitted it is unlikely to grow profits in this year or next.
Troubled outsourcing firm Serco fell 6% in the FTSE 250 Index after Credit Suisse downgraded the stock and slashed its price target.
New chief executive Rupert Soames, who took over in May, warned earlier this month that Serco faced two more difficult years as it battles to rectify the mistakes of the past. Shares were 10.9p lower at 168.1p.