A Renault logo is seen outside a dealership in Nice, France. Picture: REUTERS
The pan-European STOXX 600 added 0.4% with all major European indices in the black, although trading volumes were thin with markets in the US and UK closed for market holidays. Investors had been worried about eurosceptic parties gaining a 30% vote share — the level at which they could seriously disrupt European governance and the region’s ability to show unity in addressing key concerns like a global trade war.But while far-right, nationalist or anti-EU groups came out on top in Italy, Britain, France and Poland, they failed to alter dramatically the balance of pro-European power in the EU assembly.
European government bond markets were little moved with the spread between the German 10-year bond yield, considered one of the world’s safest assets, and the Italian 10-year government bond yield little moved after initially narrowing. Escalating trade tensions between the US and China have rattled investors in recent weeks, pressuring stocks lower just as concerns build about weakening momentum in the world’s largest economies.