In European Equity Markets stocks closed sharply higher Thursday as trade tensions eased. The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed 2.4 percent higher with every sector rising. Basic resources and technology stocks were the top-performing sectors, each up over 3 percent. Looking across the European benchmark, Ubisoft topped the gains, up by 10.77 percent. The success of its latest video game “Far Cry 5” led to a ratings upgrade and drove the shares higher. Meanwhile, the health care firm BTG fell more than 10 percent after taking an impairment charge of around 150 million pounds ($211 million), Reuters reported.

In Currency Markets the US dollar rose to a two-week high against a currency basket on Thursday, bolstered by a rebound on Wall Street and signs the United States is looking to resolve a trade dispute with China. The U.S. currency also climbed to a three-week peak against the yen and a 10-week high versus the Swiss franc, two safe-haven assets that investors buy in times of market turmoil. Against the yen, the dollar advanced to a 10-week high of 107.25 yen and was last up 0.4 percent at 107.23. The greenback jumped to a 10-week high of 0.9637 Swiss franc, last changing hands at 0.9632, up 0.2 percent.

In Commodities Markets oil prices were modestly higher on Thursday, helped by gains in U.S. equities markets as trade tensions between China and the United States eased, but the advance was limited by strength in the dollar. Brent crude futures were up 29 cents to $68.31 a barrel, and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude rose 14 cents to $63.50 a barrel. Oil was also supported by an unexpected decline in U.S. crude inventories Wednesday. The U.S. Energy Information Administration said inventories fell by 4.6 million barrels in the most recent week, compared with expectations for an increase of 246,000 barrels.

In US Equity Markets, Facebook, Amazon and industrial stocks helped Wall Street extend its recovery on Thursday as fears over a trade war between the United States and China eased. Technology stocks, which have taken a beating in the past three weeks, were higher. The S&P 500 rose 0.37 percent to 2,654.55 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.55 percent to 7,080.71. Advanced Micro Devices jumped 3.4 percent after Stifel upgraded to “buy”, while Micron Technology fell 3.7 percent after UBS started with a “sell” rating. Facebook shares were up about 3 percent after Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said the company had not seen “any meaningful impact” on usage or ad sales since the data privacy scandal.

In Bond Markets U.S. Treasury yields rose to one-week highs on Thursday as rising stock markets showed improving risk appetite, and before Friday’s closely watched employment report for March. World stocks rose as the United States voiced willingness on Wednesday to negotiate a resolution to an escalating trade fight with China. That came after Beijing retaliated against proposed U.S. tariffs on $50 billion in Chinese goods by targeting key American imports. Benchmark 10-year notes fell 7/32 in price to yield 2.814 percent, after earlier rising to 2.830 percent, the highest since March 27.