Doha: European stock indices closed higher Thursday after the European Central Bank (ECB) decided to keep interest rates steady, as expected. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index closed 0.2 percent higher after earlier hitting a six-week high.

According to Qatar News Agency, Deutsche Bank shares jumped 9.1 percent, while BNP Paribas shares rose 0.4 percent, following a near 3 percent jump earlier in the day. The easing of trade tensions with the US has pushed the Stoxx 600 index up by about 18 percent from its April lows after US President Donald Trump imposed high tariffs on US trading partners. The index remains about 2 percent away from its all-time highs reached in March.

Roche shares rose 1.4 percent after the Swiss drugmaker reported better-than-expected operating profits for the first half of the year, while Deutsche Telekom shares rose 5 percent after its US subsidiary T-Mobile reported strong second-quarter results. Both were among the key factors boosting the Stoxx 600.

However, Nestl© shares fell 4.6 percent after the Swiss conglomerate announced a strategic review of its vitamins business and reported first-half results. Shares in chipmaker STMicro fell 16.6 percent, marking its biggest one-day drop ever following its first quarterly loss in more than 10 years.