Europe stocks close higher, autos cool as Trump denies tariff report; Chip stocks climb

This was CNBC's live blog covering European markets.

European markets closed higher on Monday afternoon, having fallen from earlier highs after U.S. President-elect Donald Trump dismissed a media report that his tariff plan may not be as extreme as feared.

The regional Stoxx 600 index ended up 0.94%, as the autos sector lost some momentum, closing 3% higher from an earlier gain of nearly 5%.

The Washington Post on Monday reported that Trump's team is considering a plan to impose tariffs on all countries, but only on "critical imports." What might be covered was not specified in the story, but Germany's Daimler Truck and Italian-American Stellantis — firms with key U.S. markets — both traded around 4.5% higher.

However, Trump posted on his social network later Monday: "The story in the Washington Post, quoting so-called anonymous sources, which don't exist, incorrectly states that my tariff policy will be pared back. That is wrong. The Washington Post knows it's wrong. It's just another example of Fake News."

A spokesperson for The Washington Post confirmed that the publication "stands by its reporting" when contacted by CNBC.

Dutch chip firms remained among the top performers Monday, with ASML closing up 8.7%, ASM International up 6.2% and BE Semiconductor Industries up 5.4%. Closely watched chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. also saw a strong performance in Asia trade, with Taiwan-listed shares rising 4.65% to close at an all-time high.

The moves come after Taiwanese electronics giant Foxconn — whose customers include Apple and Nvidia — on Sunday reported record fourth-quarter revenue, sending shares almost 2% higher Monday.

On the data front in Europe, German inflation rose to a higher-than-expected 2.9% in