Eurogroup president Pierakakis said the group plans to make a swift, flexible decision on the next ECB president.

UK government bonds extended gains; 10-year gilt yield fell 5bps intraday to 5.10%.

By midday close on China's domestic futures market, most main contracts fell. Lithium carbonate led losses, down nearly 5%; LPG, styrene (EB), fuel oil and benzene fell over 3%; asphalt, the polypropylene monthly-average contract, jujubes and plastics fell over 2%. On the upside, live hogs, logs and platinum rose nearly 2%, while synthetic rubber, polysilicon and palladium gained more than 1%.