European stocks kick off 2025 on a positive note

European markets kicked off 2025 in positive territory on Thursday.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 index was 0.28% higher by 8:11 a.m. London time as regional bourses reopened after the New Year’s Day holiday.

Oil and gas and mining stocks led gains and were last 1.47% and 1.32% higher respectively. Banks, meanwhile, dipped 0.1% and media stocks fell 0.33%, making them the only two sectors to pull back.

Major regional bourses also gained on Thursday, with the U.K.’s FTSE 100 adding 0.29%, France’s CAC 40 rising 0.21% and Germany’s DAX climbing 0.55%.

There are no major earnings or data releases Thursday.

Asian stocks traded mixed overnight, with China stocks leading losses as several major markets resumed trading after the New Year holiday.

U.S. stock futures were slightly higher as trading got underway for 2025. Traders hope that the market can regain the momentum that propelled it to log two straight years of annual gains above 20%.

Although U.S. stocks fell in weak trading in the final days of 2024, the year still produced solid gains; the S&P 500 surged 23% last year, while the 30-stock Dow added nearly 13%. Fueled by the enthusiasm around artificial intelligence and interest rate cuts, the Nasdaq Composite outperformed with a 29% advance.

Investors on Thursday are likely to assess the impact of a deadly attack in New Orleans on New Year’s Day that’s being investigated as a possible terrorist act.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation said it’s possible the suspect, who drove a truck into a crowd, wasn’t “solely responsible” for the incident, in which at least 15 people died.

— CNBC’s Christina Cheddar Berk and Sophie Kiderlin contributed to this market report