(Reuters) – European stocks ended a volatile Thursday weaker, hitting session lows after the European Central Bank left its ultra-easy policy unchanged and hinted at more support in December.
“Despite no immediate change in policy at today’s meeting, this wasn’t a sign of the ECB being satisfied with the current environment,” said Jai Malhi, Global Market Strategist at J.P. Morgan Asset Management.
“Equity markets have been struggling to cope with the risks posed by the renewed spike in infections…In December, pressure will be huge for the ECB to walk the walk. The major question remains – whether the tools available to the ECB will be enough to satisfy markets and support the economy through the pandemic.”
Thursday’s moves follow a sharp sell-off in the previous session when Germany and France imposed nationwide restrictions – nearly as severe as the ones that drove the global economy this year into its deepest recession in generations – as coronavirus cases surged.
Reporting by Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila and Mark Heinrich