German stocks ended Monday higher in Europe after conservatives led by Friedrich Merz won the national election with promises of pro-growth policies to boost an ailing economy. The domestically-focussed German mid-cap index jumped 1.

Europe must seek to “achieve independence” from the United States, Germany’s likely next chancellor Friedrich Merz said after his opposition conservatives won elections on Sunday, in a vote that also saw surging support for the far-right.

Friedrich Merz could have one shot at fending off ascending populists and an increasingly hostile U.S., analysts say.