ROME: Stocks in Europe climbed to a three-week high after a European Central Bank official said it plans to increase bond buying in May and June.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index added 1.5 percent to 404 at 9:37 a.m. in London. The ECB intends to buy more euro-area assets before an expected period of low liquidity in the summer, according to the text of a speech by Executive Board member Benoit Coeure. Quantitative-easing measures helped push the Stoxx 600 up as much as 21 percent to an April peak this year, before falling 4.3 percent through the end of last week.
“There were concerns that liquidity was drying up, and now we got the assurance we needed to stabilize markets,” said Michael Woischneck, who helps manage about $6.9 billion at Lampe Asset Management in Dusseldorf, Germany. “Whatever the ECB does, it will be enough. This will push the euro down again, support growth, and bring buyers back to Europe. Exporters, like carmakers, should benefit once more. I will have to do some buying now.”
Auto shares led gains on Tuesday, with Volkswagen AG and Renault SA rising at least 2.6 percent. A report showed European car sales increased for a 20th straight month in April.
Greece’s ASE Index climbed 1.7 percent, extending Monday’s gains. Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis said in an interview with Star TV Channel that his government is “very close” to an agreement to unlock more aid from creditors. He gave a timeframe of one week to reach it.
