European shares close near nine-week high, powered by utility, telecom stocks

European stocks closed at near nine-week highs on Tuesday with utilities and telecom firms leading gains, while some positive corporate earnings also bolstered sentiment.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index  ended 0.7% higher after notching an eight-week high. Most regional bourses also ended up, with ones in Germany  and Ireland touching a record high, while Spain's was trading at its highest since 2008.

Utilities  rose 1.8%, leading broader gains, with Portugal's EDP ​​Renovaveis  climbing 4.1% after Deutsche Bank upgraded the stock to "buy" from "hold."

Shares of offshore wind power developers Oersted jumped 14.5% and Vestas Wind  gained 4.8% after U.S. President Donald Trump's administration lifted a month-old stop-work order on a major offshore wind facility planned off the coast of New York.

Vodafone's  7.3% gain after the telecom giant said it sees cash-flow growth this year boosted the sector 1.7%.

Broader markets also stabilised after a surprise downgrade by Moody's on U.S. sovereign credit late on Friday sapped risk appetite. However, Wall Street had recouped early declines to close flat on Monday.