European banks, airlines surge after COVID-19 vaccine news

Shares in European banks and in the travel and leisure industries surged about 10 per cent on Monday after Pfizer announced that its experimental COVID-19 vaccine was more than 90 per cent effective, which prompted a major rally across the continent's bourses.

Europe's banking index made its biggest jump since the European sovereign debt crisis in 2011 and gained 10.9 per cent.

European airlines, hard hit by the social restructions induced by the pandemic, made high double-digit gains, such as BA owner IAG , rising close to 40 per cent.

Earlier, Britain’s transport minister Grant Shapps told an online airport industry conference that Britain was making “good progress” with a plan to allow COVID-19 tests to shorten a 14-day quarantine period for those returning from abroad, a change that could help fuel a recover in travel.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index, which was already rising after Joe Biden’s victory in the U.S. presidential election, jumped 4.5 per cent.