The German DAX reached record highs on Friday as European equities increased, helped by signals that the discussions to raise the U.S. debt ceiling were making headway.
By 07:08 GMT, the pan-European STOXX 600 index (.STOXX) had risen 0.4%, indicating that the week would close with modest gains. The top two gainers among European industries were mining corporations (.SXPP) and financial services firms (.SXFP).
After closing at its highest level since 2023 on Thursday, the German DAX (.GDAXI) increased 0.3%. The index is only a few hundred points behind the 16,290.19 all-time high it reached in November 2021.
The S&P 500 (.SPX) and Nasdaq (.IXIC) on Wall Street recorded their highest closes in more than eight months on Thursday, propelled by growing hope that a U.S. debt ceiling agreement could be achieved soon.
The European Central Bank is likely to continue raising interest rates as evidenced by data showing that German producer prices increased by a slightly higher-than-anticipated 4.1% in April on a year-over-year basis.
Later in the day, separate panel talks will feature Jerome Powell, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, and Christine Lagarde, the president of the European Central Bank.