Doha: European stocks closed broadly higher, buoyed by lower oil prices. The Stoxx 600, which represents 600 of the largest publicly traded European companies, rose 0.7 percent. The increase was broad-based across many industries. France's CAC 40 index was up 1.08 percent, while Germany's DAX index was up 1.71 percent. Meanwhile, the FTSE MIB index, representing Italian companies, was up 2.28 percent.

According to Qatar News Agency, the UK's FTSE 100 was the only exception to today's rise, retreating 1.66 percent at the close of trading.