European stocks jump to 2-week high on hopes about Omicron

European stocks rose on Thursday, and hit a 2-week high, extending gains for the second straight session, thanks to strong market sentiment, after a study from South Africa showed a lower risk of hospitalization from Omicron compared to the Delta variant.

The Stoxx Europe 600 index rose 0.6% as of 11:45 GMT, and hit the highest level since December 8 of 481.28 points, after closing higher by 0.9% yesterday.

The travel sector saw the largest gains in Europe today, with a rise of over 2%, as fears about Omicron eased.

A study in South Africa on cases infected with the omicron variant suggests lower risk of hospitalization and severe disease compared to the delta variant.

The study found that patients who were diagnosed with Omicron between October 1 and November 30 were 80% less likely to be hospitalized than those diagnosed with another variant during the same period.

The US Food and Drug Administration has officially approved Pfizer's antiviral pills for patients aged 12 years and over who are at risk of developing severe symptoms.

S&P 500 futures rose 0.25% today ahead of Wall Street's opening, after the index closed higher by 1% yesterday.

Back to Europe, the Euro Stoxx 50 index rose 0.6%, France's CAC 40 rose 0.4%, and Germany's DAX index rose 0.7%, while the UK's FTSE 100 rose 0.3%.