European Stocks Close Higher

European stocks rose today, Friday, as disappointing data about factory activity in China revived hopes for Beijing to boost its economic stimulus policy. The Stoxx 600 index closed up 1.2 percent. The index increased by 0.9 percent at the end of the second quarter, with growing evidence of a weak recovery in China post-COVID leading to a halt in the stock market's rise that began earlier this year due to concerns about global interest rates remaining high for an extended period. A preliminary reading showed that inflation in the eurozone decreased for the third consecutive month in June, but this is unlikely to impact the European Central Bank, which plans to raise interest rates in July for the ninth consecutive time, with an additional hike also expected in September. European stocks are still up 8.7 percent in the first six months of the year.