Europe: Stocks rebound slightly at open

[LONDON] Europe's main stock markets rose in opening deals on Thursday, rebounding somewhat from the previous day's coronavirus-fuelled losses.

In initial deals, London's FTSE 100 index gained 0.7 per cent to 5,494.38 points compared with Wednesday's closing level.

In the eurozone, Frankfurt's DAX added 0.5 per cent to 9,593.53 points and the Paris CAC 40 won 0.6 per cent to 4,231.07.

All three bourses had shed about 4.0 per cent on Wednesday in a global rout as the human and economic toll from the coronavirus continued to rise and more governments shut down activity to try to contain the outbreak.

Sentiment was jarred after US President Donald Trump said late Tuesday that the US was in for "a very, very painful two weeks" as health experts warned the nation's death count could reach 240,000.

AFP