European shares rejoice on Fed, ECB hopes

European shares ended higher on Thursday, boosted by a pledge on low rates by the Federal Reserve and hopes for more accommodation in the Eurozone.

The European Central Bank said eurozone banks borrowed 82.6 billion euros ($106.9 billion) through the first round of the targeted long-term refinancing operation (TLTRO), falling significantly short of market expectations.

With the uptake on the weaker side, analysts suggested that the ECB now is closer to launching a full-scale QE program.

-  Stoxx      600   advanced 0.98 percent or 3.93 points to  347.78

-  Stoxx 50   advanced 1.05% or 33.93 points to 3271.37

European markets were already higher from the open, getting a boost from Wednesday’s trade in the U.S. where the Dow Jones Industrial Average struck yet another record closing high, as investors embraced reassurance from the Federal Reserve that it would continue on its cautious course toward a rate hike next year.

In the U.K., everyone was looking north as the Scots headed for the polls to vote on the country’s independence. The polls have suggested that the race is neck to neck, causing turbulence in financial markets.

 A survey from pollster YouGov Thursday morning gave pro-union support a narrow lead, showing 49% of the 3,000 people polled between Monday and Wednesday want to keep Scotland in the union and 45% support independence. The rest were undecided or didn’t know, YouGov said.

-The British  FTSE 100   advanced 0.57% or 38.39 points to  6819.29

-The French  CAC 40   advanced 0.75% or 33.29 points to  4464.70

-Frankfurt’s  DAX 30   advanced 1.41% or 136.63 points to  9798.13