The French CAC 40 rose 0.5% on Monday morning and the German DAX index by 1.3%. The UK FTSE 100 index is closed for the Christmas holidays on Monday.
Trump on Sunday prevented government shutdown and extended unemployment benefits to millions of Americans. The signing came days after Trump suggested he veto the legislation and demanded $ 2,000 direct payments to Americans instead of $ 600. US stock futures rose slightly on the news.
In Asia, Alibaba’s shares in Hong Kong fell more than 8% for the second consecutive session after Chinese regulators ordered Alibaba-affiliated Ant Group to correct its operations.
Back in Europe, traders responded to the announcement of a Brexit trade deal between the UK and the EU. The deal, which was struck after the markets closed on December 24, has yet to be approved by UK lawmakers before the December 31 deadline this week.
In individual stock news, Italian Saipem saw its shares rise 1.9% after signing a deal with the Italian navy. Deutsche Post, Germany, rose 3% after its CEO said the company expected record profits for 2020.
—CNBC’s Eustance Huang and Yun Li contributed to this article.