European stocks rose Wednesday, helped by S&P's remarks that it no longer considers a downgrade of Greece's credit rating to be imminent.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index was up 0.4% at 260.2. London's FTSE 100 was up 0.3% at 5638.3, Frankfurt's DAX was 0.5% higher at 5999.9 and Paris's CAC-40 was 0.3% higher at 3950.4.
Optimism was boosted when Greece's BBB+ credit rating was taken off watch negative by S&P. Although this eased the threat of a near-term downgrade, the risk isn't ruled out in the medium term as reflected by the negative outlook on the rating, said Jim Reid, strategist at Deutsche Bank.
"One of the key risks for Greece is underestimating the lost output given the aggressive fiscal adjustment. S&P acknowledge this and in reading the report you can't help but think that a downgrade is still highly likely unless fiscal perfection is achieved over the next few quarters," Mr. Reid said.
The Federal Reserve's statement that it will continue to keep U.S. interest rates low for an extended period gave equity investors further reason to remain confident.
Now, market participants are looking at Wednesday's economic calendar for further direction. The U.S. producer price index at 1230 GMT will garner attention. Also, current Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and former Fed Chairman Paul Volcker are set to testify before a U.S. House financial services committee hearing examining the link between Fed bank supervision and monetary policy.
On Wall Street Tuesday, stocks rose broadly as the Federal Reserve reiterated its easy-money stance. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.4% to 10685.98, marking its sixth-straight day higher, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index advanced 0.8% to 1159.46, its highest close since Oct. 1, 2008.
In the Asian share markets Wednesday, stocks were mostly higher on the Fed's pledge to keep interest rates low, while Tokyo shares were supported by the Bank Of Japan's decision to ease monetary conditions further.
Japan's Nikkei 225 was up 1.2% while South Korea's Kospi Composite was up 2.1%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 1.7% while the Shanghai Composite was 1.9% higher.
In the European foreign exchanges, the euro was steady on the Fed's statement and S&P's comments on Greece. The currency was recently trading at $1.3774, up from $1.3766 in late New York trade Tuesday. Meanwhile, the dollar firmed slightly to ¥90.63, up from ¥90.31.
Elsewhere, spot gold was at $1129.20 per ounce, up $1.45 from the New York close. In the oil markets, April Nymex crude was up 45 cents at $82.15 per barrel.
Write to Ishaq Siddiqi at ishaq.siddiqi@dowjones.com
