Equities remained resilient yesterday despite disappointing growth in Europe and the United States and the Bank of Japan failing to deliver an expected boost to stimulus.
Frankfurt and Paris both ended the day higher despite eurozone economic growth halving to 0.3% in the second quarter.
Meanwhile, London edged out a small gain as oil prices bounced off three-month lows struck earlier in the day.
Investors were meanwhile bracing for the outcome of the European Banking Authority’s latest round of stress tests on 51 banks across Europe, amid concern over Italy’s lenders.
However, shares in European lenders rose sharply on plans to rescue Italian bank Monte Paschi di Siena, one of the most troubled lenders.
In London, the FTSE 100 up 0.05% at 6,724.43 points; Frankfurt — DAX 30 up 0.6% at 10,337.50 points and Paris — CAC 40 up 0.4% at 4,439.81 points at the close yesterday.
US stocks were narrowly mixed approaching midday, despite the US economy growing only at a modest 1.2% in the second quarter of this year, well below analysts’ expectations of 2.6%.
In Asia yesterday, Bank of Japan policymakers said only that they would boost its exposure to riskier investments, leaving its massive ¥80tn annual asset-buying programme unchanged.
The news came despite weeks of fervent speculation that the BoJ would pump fresh cash into the nation’s sluggish economy.
“Markets may be disappointed that the Bank of Japan did not deliver more stimulus overnight...but financials are clearly relieved that it didn’t take interest rates further negative,” said analyst Mike van Dulken at traders Accendo Markets.
The news sent the dollar tumbling in Asian deals to below ¥103 from ¥104.20 earlier in the day, and well off the levels above ¥107 touched last week.
The Nikkei stock index sank almost 2% at one point but bounced back to end 0.6% higher.
Japanese officials are under intense pressure to deliver as the fate of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s faltering bid to reignite the world’s number three economy, dubbed Abenomics, looks increasingly gloomy.
The gathering was its first since Britain’s shock vote last month to quit the European Union.
The referendum result hammered financial markets and sparked a yen rally that is threatening corporate Japan’s bottom line — and fanning concerns about growth.
Back in Europe, official data showed eurozone economic growth halved in the second quarter, with analysts warning that Brexit fallout could harm the economy further later in the year.
The Eurostat statistics agency said economic growth in the 19-nation single currency bloc slowed to 0.3% in the April to June period, with stagnation in France largely contributing to the poor data.
This was down from a far more robust expansion of 0.6% in the previous quarter.
“It was looking like the (eurozone) region could be in for a real worrying number following the stagnant French figure from earlier in the morning; and in no way is a halving of growth quarter-on-quarter a good thing,” Spreadex analyst Connor Campbell told AFP.