Stock markets climb as ECB calms investors

London - Stock markets extended a rally on Thursday as the European Central Bank calmed investors signalling no imminent end to its bond-buying policy.

The ECB kept its key interest rates unchanged as chief Mario Draghi played down expectations the bank could announce an end to its mass buying of €60bn of government and corporate bonds per month.

"The ECB played it safe today," commented analyst Holger Schmieding of Berenberg bank as Draghi said discussions would continue in months to come.

The broad gains in eurozone markets and in London followed fresh all-time highs on all three major US indices on Wednesday, which also boosted Asia markets.

Tokyo stocks rose after Japan's central bank cut its inflation forecasts, again meaning its easy money policies would remain in place.

Shanghai added 0.4% and Hong Kong added 0.3% to extend a rally into its ninth straight day.

US stocks opened flat on Thursday. While investors are upbeat about the corporate outlook, President Donald Trump's woes and stuttering indicators, including on US inflation, are keeping the dollar at multi-month lows.

Hopes are quickly fading for the tycoon's promises to boost the economy - which had fuelled a global rally after his November election - as the collapse of his key health care reforms this week throw his tax-cutting plans into doubt.

The euro had surged to a near 15-month high of $1.1583 on Tuesday before dipping slightly to $1.1564 on Thursday.

Draghi in focus

Draghi's post-meeting statement emphasised that with inflation weak, despite a pickup in growth and employment in the euro area, monetary support was still needed to encourage price growth.

"We need to be persistent, and patient," Draghi said, as "really there isn't any convincing sign of pickup" in inflation.

The Bank of Japan retained its own policy, as expected, but slashed its inflation outlook and once again put back its forecast for hitting a 2% rate as it struggles to kick-start the world's number-three economy.

Officials had in 2013 set a two-year timeline when unveiling the bank's massive monetary easing programme as part of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's push to kick-start growth in the world's number-three economy.

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