European shares hit February highs on Wednesday, joining a global stock market rally on optimism around progress in Covid-19 vaccines and US stimulus package, while all eyes turned to make-or-break Brexit talks.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 index and London’s FTSE 100 both climbed 0.3 per cent.
UK Brexit supremo, Michael Gove, on Wednesday said Britain and the European Union should have a "smoother glide path" to a Brexit trade after they agreed on the implementation of the Northern Ireland protocol - a major point of contention between the two sides - a day before.
But others including EU's chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, and UK prime minister Boris Johnson said a no-deal scenario was more likely with just three weeks left till Britain's exit from the bloc.
Mr Johnson is to meet European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday in a last ditch attempt to seal a deal. Globally, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq hit record highs overnight, and Asia shares followed suit.
After Britain on Tuesday became the first Western nation to start vaccinating its population with the Pfizer/BioNtech Covid-19 vaccine, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson made further progress with trials and regulatory approvals, receptively. - Reuters
