In European Equity Markets stocks closed just below the flat line Thursday, as heightened expectations of faster interest rate hikes in the U.S. hampered risk appetite globally. The U.K. FTSE 100 was the worst performing major index, closing lower by 0.4 percent. This was an improvement on trade earlier in the afternoon, when it was over 1 percent lower. The French CAC and German DAX were both close to the flat line. Utilities was the standout sector, closing up 1.45 percent. Centrica, which owns British Gas, topped the sector by closing up 7.5 percent. After announcing a fall in operating profit, it announced plans to cut 4,000 jobs in an attempt to save on costs. The basic resources sector rebounded in afternoon trade, closing just 0.04 percent in the red.

In Currency Markets the US dollar inched up to a 10-day high on Thursday after minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve’s January meeting showed policymakers confident in rising inflation, while the euro was left unmoved by its own central bank’s policy minutes. European Central Bank policymakers meeting last month felt it was too early to change their communication stance to signal a normalization of policy, even if confidence was growing that inflation would finally rise back to target, minutes showed on Thursday. The euro hit the day’s high of $1.2308 after the minutes but quickly eased back to trade down 0.1 percent on the day at $1.2266 against a broadly stronger euro. The dollar index climbed to as high as 90.235, the strongest since Feb. 13, and was last up 0.2 percent at 90.134.

In Commodities Markets oil prices rallied on Thursday with U.S. crude rising to a two-week high, boosted by data showing a surprise draw in U.S. crude inventories and also by a decline in the dollar. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures for April delivery rose $1.05 to $62.73 a barrel, a 1.7 percent gain. Brent crude futures for April delivery rose 78 cents to $66.20 a barrel, a 1.2 percent gain. U.S. crude inventories unexpectedly fell 1.6 million barrels in the week to Feb. 16, as net imports dropped to a record low and exports surged, according to data from the Energy Information Administration. Analysts had expected an increase of 1.8 million barrels. Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma, delivery hub fell by 2.7 million barrels, the EIA said.

In US Equity Markets gains in technology and industrial shares helped U.S. stocks rebound from a two-day fall on Thursday as investors shrugged off the prospects of more interest rate hikes this year. The S&P 500 was up 0.75 percent at 2,721.61 and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.64 percent to 7,264.69. Both the indexes benefited from gains in Amazon, Apple, Microsoft and Facebook. All the 11 major S&P sectors were higher, led by a more than 2 percent rise in the energy index. Chesapeake Energy was the top gainer on the index, jumping 19 percent, after the company reported upbeat quarterly profit. Pandora Media fell 7.6 percent after multiple brokerages slashed their price targets on the internet radio company’s stock following results.

In Bond Markets Euro zone government bond yields fell on Thursday after a survey showed German business confidence fell in February, offsetting an earlier rise in yields after the minutes of the last Federal Reserve meeting revived fears of inflation. German 10-year bond yields, the benchmark for the region, were down 2 bps at 0.70 percent, having reversed early rises. Greek government bonds were in demand after Moody’s moved overnight to upgrade Greece two notches from “Caa2” to “B3” and maintained its positive outlook. The agency said it believed Greece will return to self-sufficiency and market-based funding. The yield on Greece’s 10-year government bond fell 9 basis points to 4.34 percent before closing around 4.38 percent