European Bourses Close Higher as Omicron Concerns Fade

European stocks continued to rally on Tuesday as concerns subsided over the impact of the highly infectious omicron variant of the coronavirus on the global economy.

France's CAC climbed 2.9%, Germany's DAX rose 2.8%, and Stoxx Europe 600 was up 2.5%. The FTSE 100 in the UK rose 1.5% while the Swiss Market Index closed up 1.1%.

The eurozone's gross domestic product rose 2.2% in the third quarter compared with the prior three-month period, in line with the previous forecasts, Eurostat's third estimate showed. Compared with a year earlier, the euro area's seasonally adjusted GDP was up 3.9%, beating the previous estimate of 3.7% growth. Meanwhile, the wider European Union's GDP increased 2.1% quarter over quarter and 4.1% year over year, revised upward from a 3.9% rise.

Economic sentiment in the euro area climbed to 26.8 points in December from 25.9 last month, according to data released by ZEW. The situation indicator stood at -2.3, falling 13.9 points compared with the previous month.

Germany's industrial production jumped 2.8% in October following a revised 0.5% drop in September, the country's Federal Statistical Office said. The latest reading exceeded the consensus estimate of a 0.8% rise.

The average house prices in Britain increased for the fifth straight month by 1% in November, after a 1% increase in October, to a record 272,992 British pounds ($362, 708), mortgage lender Halifax said. The prices jumped 8.2% annually in November, compared with an 8.2% growth in October.

On the corporate front, shares of both Volkswagen VOW and Porsche Automobil SE PAH3 were up more 8% following a Handeslblatt report that said the Porsche-Piech family is looking to divest a part of its Volkswagen stake to fund the initial public offering of Porsche AG.