12:19 PM EDT, 05/30/2024 (MT Newswires) -- European stock markets closed higher in Thursday trading as the Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.63%, the Swiss Market Index increased 0.65%, France's CAC was up 0.57%, the FTSE in London gained 0.64% and Germany's DAX closed 0.22% higher.

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate declined to 6.4% in the euro area in April from 6.5% in both March and April 2023, according to Eurostat, the statistical office of the EU. The unemployment rate in the EU was 6% in April, unchanged from March and from a year earlier.

The European Commission's Economic Sentiment Indicator increased 0.3 points to 96.5 in the EU and 0.4 points to 96 in the euro area in May from April. The EC's Employment Expectations Indicator declined 0.4 points in the EU to 101.2 and was down 0.3 points in the euro area to 101.3.

In the UK, household costs rose 4.4% in Q1, slowing from the annual rate of 5.3% in January, according to the Office for National Statistics.

In Spain, the annual change in the flash estimate of the consumer prices index rose to 3.6% in May from 3.3% in April, according to the Spanish Statistical Institute.

In Switzerland, GDP adjusted for sporting events grew 0.3% in Q1, according to the Swiss Federal Statistical Office. The services sector continued to grow, and private consumption increased, while industrial output stagnated.

In corporate news, Auto Trader Group shares surged 13% in London after the company reported fiscal year 2024 revenue grew 12% on increases across all segments.

Swiss banking giant UBS was fined 50,000 Swiss francs ($55,220) by the Swiss finance ministry for allegedly failing to report cases of suspected money laundering linked to the former president of Yemen, Ali Abdullah Saleh, the finance ministry confirmed.

Canadian investment firm Brookfield is in exclusive negotiations to buy a 53% stake in French renewable energy developer Neoen. The deal, which represents a 27% premium over Neoen's last closing price, values all of Neoen at 6.1 billion euros ($6.61 billion).