European shares closed largely higher on Wednesday, as investors bet the U.S. Federal Reserve would hold off on hiking interest rates.
The pan-European FTS 300 closed provisionally higher by 0.5 percent at 1,386.
All major country bourses posted gains except for the U.K. FTSE 100 which ended 0.1 percent lower, hit by uncertainty ahead of the closely fought Scottish independence referendum.
Most European sectors posted gains, with basic resources and banks outperforming.
The basic resources sector was boosted by heavily-weighted mining stocks with strong exposure to China. These gained on unconfirmed reports that the People's Bank of China is to provide hefty liquidity injections for China's five largest banks. The move has not been officially confirmed.
Asian stocks closed mixed on Wednesday following the reports.
Fed Meeting
Meanwhile, the Fed concluded its two-day policy meeting on Wednesday with a statement and press conference after European markets close.
Investors are looking for hints as to when the Fed intends to start hiking rates from record lows. While the central bank is not seen beginning to tighten policy under the middle of next year, its statement, scheduled for publication at 7 p.m. London time, could shed light on timings. The Fed could also change its description of the labor market, to signal whether progress has been made towards its employment target.
U.S. stocks gained on Wednesday, with the Dow hitting another record high, on the assumption that a rate hike was still far off.