European shares rose on Wednesday, with banking stocks and clean energy shares posting the biggest gains, after Democrats took control of both chambers of the U.S. Congress.
At the same time, the share price of Novo Nordisk, the maker of the obesity drug Wegovy, rose sharply after it raised its annual forecasts.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index rose 0.5% at 08:16 GMT, while Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC 40 also advanced. Italy’s FTSE MIB index performed better, gaining 1.2%.
Bank stocks were among the best-performing sectors, rising by more than 2%, as investors turned to domestically oriented banks, which had lagged the broader market for most of the year.
STOXX futures had earlier fallen as much as 1.4% before recovering after Democrats secured majorities in both the Senate and the House of Representatives. U.S. President Donald Trump’s acceptance of the election results also had a positive effect on investor sentiment.
Clean energy company shares, which have been hit hard by Trump’s policies, posted the largest gains.
Vestas gained 5%, Orsted rose 7%, while Nordex climbed 4.7%.
Novo Nordisk shares rose 4.6% after the Wegovy maker reported adjusted operating profit for the third quarter that beat expectations and raised its annual sales and profit forecasts.
Technology sector shares also recovered from initial losses, turning positive with a 0.4% gain.