Investing.com - European stock markets mostly rose Thursday, with sentiment boosted by hopes that the war in Ukraine could end shortly, while investors digested UK growth data as well as a raft of corporate earnings.

At 03:05 ET (08:05 GMT), the DAX index in Germany gained 1.2% and the CAC 40 in France climbed 1%, while the FTSE 100 in the UK fell 0.4%.

End to Ukraine war? 

The end of the war between Ukraine and Russia looks more likely after U.S. President Donald Trump held phone calls with both countries' leaders to discuss a potential peace deal.

Trump said that both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy had expressed a desire for ending their long-running conflict in separate phone calls with him on Wednesday. 

The U.S. President also said that he had ordered top officials to begin peace talks.

The move came after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Ukraine would drop its bid to join NATO - which had been a major point of contention for Moscow.

UK economy grew in Q4 

Data released earlier Thursday showed that Britain's economy unexpectedly grew by 0.1% in the final quarter of last year, belying expectations that gross domestic product would shrink by 0.1%.

GDP rose by 0.4% in December from November, much stronger than the 0.1% forecast and driven by stronger-than-expected 0.4% growth in the large services sector.

German inflation remained flat year-on-year in January at 2.8%, preliminary data from the federal statistics office showed on Friday, in line with a forecast.

Barclays reports rise in annual profit

There are more quarterly corporate earnings for investors to digest Thursday.

Barclays (LON:BARC) reported a 24% rise in annual pretax profit, slightly above expectations, as the lender’s investment bank reported strong performance for 2024 and slower than expected interest rate cuts sustained income in its domestic lending business.

Commerzbank (ETR:CBKG) reported strong results in 2024 on Thursday, with revenues growing 6.2% from the previous year, driven by heightened activity in securities trading and capital markets, with corporate clients contributing substantially to the uplift.

Unilever (LON:ULVR) reported underlying sales growth of 4%, slightly below expectations, and consumer goods giant said its ice cream business will be separated by way of demerger, through listing of the business in Amsterdam, London and New York.

Nestle (SIX:NESN) reported organic growth of 2.2% in 2024, a sharp decline from the 7.2% seen in 2023, reflecting a challenging macroeconomic environment and shifting consumer demand. 

Thyssenkrupp (ETR:TKAG) raised its outlook for free cash flow, with the German industrial conglomerate citing advance payments for a major submarine order from the German military.

Crude falls on Ukraine peace hopes 

Oil prices fell Thursday, on expectations that a potential peace deal between Ukraine and Russia would end sanctions that have disrupted supply flows.

By 03:05 ET, the US crude futures (WTI) slipped 1% to $70.66 a barrel, while the Brent contract fell 1% to $74.47 a barrel.

Both benchmarks fell more than 2% on Wednesday on raised hopes of a peace deal after President Trump spoke the presidents of both Russia and Ukraine.

Russia is the world's third-largest oil producer and sanctions imposed on its crude exports as a result of its invasion of Ukraine nearly three years ago have supported higher prices.

A build in crude oil inventories in the United States, the world's biggest crude consumer, also weighed on the market.