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The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 moved forward by 0.5 per cent to a total of 1,035.89 points, with banks among the top gainers.
On a more global scale the MSCI world equity index, which added 0.4 per cent to reach 316.98, is on track for an overall rise of roughly 5.8 percent in January.
Chris Weston, institutional dealer at IG Markets, warned the news provider that despite these positive signs, it is possible problems in Portugal could plunge the market into another risk-averse period.
"It seems the market is pushing Portugal down the same path as Greece, and bond holders are now coming to reality that they may have to write off some of their Portuguese debt holdings," Mr Weston explained.
Bloomberg noted the euro dipped against the dollar yesterday during debt talks with Greece as investors continued to be concerned about the prospect of a messy default.
Posted by Clive Arneil
