12:28 PM EDT, 09/09/2024 (MT Newswires) -- The European stock markets closed higher on Monday as the Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.76%, the Swiss Market Index gained 0.61%, France's CAC increased 0.99 %, the FTSE in London climbed 1.09%, and Germany's DAX closed 0.71% higher.

Former European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said in a report Monday that the European Union will have to invest a minimum of 750 billion ($828.3 billion) to 800 billion additional euros to keep up with competition as a bloc with the US and China.

"The financing needs required for the EU to meet its objectives are massive," Draghi said, adding that

"Europe must profoundly refocus its collective efforts on closing the innovation gap with the US and China, especially in advanced technologies."

And in corporate news, HSBC is considering combining its commercial and investment bank divisions as part of an effort to cut costs, Bloomberg reported Monday. The combined division would contribute approximately $40 billion in revenue per year to HSBC. HSBC declined to comment to MT Newswires. HSBC was up nearly 2% in London.

Stellantis' Chrysler unit is recalling 1.23 million Dodge Ram 1500 trucks in the US due to a software malfunction in the anti-lock brake system that can increase the risk of a crash, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Friday. The recall applies to model years 2019 and 2021 to 2024. Stellantis was up fractionally in Milan.

TC BioPharm said late Friday that it plans to start proof of concept preclinical studies for lead therapeutic TCB 008 for the treatment of monkey pox. The company said it expects to team up with an infectious disease center or university linked to a similar organization to advance the studies.

Norwegian browser operator Opera said Monday that its gaming browser Opera GX is collaborating with Riot Games to be its selected browser partner for the 2024 League of Legends World Championship. Financial terms weren't disclosed. Opera ADRs were up more than 2% in Stuttgart.