European shares rose on Thursday after minutes of the U.S. Federal Reserve's latest policy meeting suggested the central bank would be less inclined than anticipated to raise interest rates, Reuters reported. LVMH surged 3.9 percent, the top blue-chip gainer across Europe, after the world's biggest luxury group said sales at its fashion and leather division rose 9 percent, beating analysts' expectations. Trading volume in LVMH was robust, at around three quarters of its 90-day daily average, against the FTSEurofirst 300 on almost a fifth of its average. The FTSEurofirst 300 was up 0.4 percent at 1,343.63 points by 0757 GMT, building on a 0.4 percent rise on Wednesday when concerns about valuations, which triggered a steep sell-off earlier in the week, started to ease. The gains leave the index around 1 percent off near six-year highs hit on Friday. The Euro STOXX 50 was up 0.3 percent at 3,191.38 points. It is just 1.5 percent below 5-1/2 year highs reached on Friday. The STOXX 50 has found strong support over the last couple of days just beneath 3,180, a previous level of resistance.
