By Sruthi Shankar

(Reuters) – Europe’s major stocks index rebounded from 9-month lows Friday after a rally on Wall Street, as investors sought bargains following a bruising selloff in this week’s Ukraine invasion.

Pan-European index rose 0.6%, after falling to its lowest level since May 2021. With losses exceeding 4%, the benchmark ended this week.

U.S. stock closed up on Thursday in dramatic market swing as President Joe Biden announced harsh new sanctions against Russia. Some analysts believe the measures are not as severe as they were feared.

However, the market mood remained fragile with U.S. stock futures falling, which points to weakness on Wall Street.

As Russian forces advanced on Kyiv, Missiles pummeled the city Friday. Volodymyr Zelenskiy, President of Ukraine, appealed for greater international cooperation. He said that sanctions already imposed were inadequate.

Christian Stocker from UniCredit said that while visibility is expected to stay low, it’s still unclear if there will be an increase in risk appetite ahead of the weekend.

Stocker stated that “from a valuation perspective, there is a good possibility that stock markets will have reached a trading bottom.” He also said that technical support is being provided by the Euro Zone blue-chip index at 3,800 to 4,000 levels.

STOXX 600 has fallen nearly 13% since its peak January date. Thursday’s selloff led it to correction territory. This is 10% more than the previous record highs.

European gains were led by defensive sectors like utilities and real property, but chemical stocks fell 0.6%.

Due to Russia’s dependence on oil supplies, the investors are concerned that the rising prices of oil and natural gas will cause inflation and disrupt the economic recovery within the Euro zone.

On Thursday, European Central Bank policymakers met at Paris. Christine Lagarde, President of the ECB will hold a press conference on Friday.

Goldman Sachs’ (NYSE:), cut its 12-month goal for STOXX600 to 490 instead of 530. This was due to the risks posed by the Ukraine crisis.

Porsche SE (DE:), and Volkswagen (DE;) both gained 3.6% & 2.2%, respectively, after Volkswagen and Porsche revealed details about a potential Porsche listing.

Swiss Re (OTC:) fell 5.9% as the reinsurance company swung to a smaller-than-expected full-year profit in 2021.

German chemicals company BASF lost 4.2% following its forecast of lower operating earnings in 2022 due to slower economic expansion.