01:23 PM EDT, 03/16/2023 (MT Newswires) -- Stability from the European Central Bank provided investors with some relief Thursday, pushing major stock markets in the region higher to recover from deep losses the day before.

At close of Thursday trading, the Stoxx Europe 600 added 1.3%, London's FTSE 100 gained nearly 1%, the Swiss Market Index was up 2%, France's CAC 40 increased 2% and Germany's DAX was nearly 2% higher.

The ECB raised its three key interest rates by 50 basis points, a move it flagged in February. While it did not provide any guidance for its next meeting, ECB President Christine Lagarde said inflation is expected to be "too high for too long" so policymakers will stick to a data-dependent approach to rate decisions.

Analysts from ING and Scotiabank Economics are expecting a 25-bp rate hike at the next meeting, while Danske Bank sees another half-point increase in May and a peak policy rate of 4% in July.

Aside from the as-expected rate update, the ECB also addressed the current turmoil in the financial markets, saying that it is monitoring the situation and is ready to "respond as necessary to preserve price stability and financial stability in the euro area."

Meanwhile, Credit Suisse shares recovered from record lows the previous day, after it said it took a "decisive action to pre-emptively strengthen its liquidity" by exercising an option to borrow up to 50 billion francs from the Swiss National Bank. The banking group's shares surged 19.2% while the central bank was up 2.44% on SIX Swiss.

In the red, Novo Nordisk fell nearly 2% on Nasdaq Copenhagen after it reported its two-year suspension from the Association of the British Pharmaceutical over breaches of the association's code of practice.

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