European markets close higher amid renewed hopes for Ukraine-Russia talks

LONDON — European stocks closed higher on Monday ahead of further talks between Russian and Ukrainian negotiators.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 provisionally ended up 1.2%, with autos and banks jumping over 3.2% to lead gains while mining stocks fell 2.5%

Global attention remains on the war in Ukraine after a weekend of intensified fighting around capital Kyiv, while Russian forces bombarded cities across the country, killing civilians who are unable to escape. Russia also attacked a Ukrainian military training center near the Polish border on Sunday, killing 35 people and wounding 134

Sanctions continue to hit Russia hard with the financial fallout for Moscow’s invasion expected to come into sharper focus in the coming days ahead of a scheduled sovereign bond payment

Talks are taking place again on Monday in a bid to establish a solid ceasefire and find room for any compromise between Russia and Ukraine’s demands, although previous discussions have ended in failure

The U.S. Federal Reserve is also in focus this week as it is expected to raise its target fed funds rate by a quarter percentage point from zero at the end of its two-day meeting Wednesday

Investors are also looking to the central bank for its new forecasts for rates, inflation and the economy, given the uncertainty from escalated geopolitical tensions

U.S. stocks rose on Wall Street to kick off the crucial week, while shares in Asia-Pacific were mixed in Monday trade as investors monitored a Covid wave in China.

Sweden’s Storskogen Group was among the top performers in the Stoxx 600, gaining more than 6.5%. Dutch investment company Prosus fell more than 10% to the bottom of the index, tracking losses in Chinese tech giant Tencent, in which it it has a substantial stake