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European shares close at record high after Fed, BoE announcements

European shares rose for a fifth straight session on Thursday to hit record highs as investors took comfort from the U.S. Federal Reserve signalling it was in no hurry to hike interest rates, while the Bank of England left its benchmark rate at an all-time low.

The pan-European STOXX 600 closed 0.4% higher after spending most of the day in positive territory after the Fed, as expected, said it would begin scaling back its monthly bond purchases in November with plans to end them next year.

The European Central Bank also signalled on Wednesday that it was in no rush to tighten policy.

The Bank of England, meanwhile, caught investors by surprise, as it left its benchmark lending rate unchanged, slamming sterling and lifting London’s FTSE 100 by 0.4%.

The STOXX 600 has hit a series of all-time highs in November, driven by a relatively strong earnings season despite rising cost pressures.

The euro zone’s volatility gauge fell further to its lowest since mid-June.

Reference: Reuters, CNBC