European Stocks Close Higher After Cautious Session

(RTTNews) - Despite struggling for support till mid afternoon, European stocks edged higher on Friday after cooler-than-expected U.S. consumer price inflation raised prospects of an interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve next week.

Investors also digested a fresh batch of corporate earnings announcements, and regional economic data, in addition to following the developments on the geopolitical front.

Data from the Labor Department showed the U.S. consumer price index rose by 0.3% in September after climbing by 0.4% in August. Economists had expected consumer prices to rise by another 0.4%.

The report also said the annual rate of growth by consumer prices ticked up to 3% in September from 2.9% in August, although that was slower than the 3.1% jump expected by economists.

The pan European Stoxx 600 climbed 0.23%. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 gained 0.7% and Germany's DAX edged up 0.13%, while France's CAC 40 settled flat. Switzerland's SMI crept up 0.09%.

Among other markets in Europe, Czech Republic, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Turkiye closed higher.

Austria, Denmark, Greece, Norway, Poland and Russia ended weak.

In the UK market, Natwest Group and London Stock Exchange Group gained 4.9% and 4.8%, respectively. Tesco, Next, Polar Capital Technology Trust, 3i Group, Kingfisher, Compass Group, DCC, Phonenix Group Holdings, IMI, Diploma, Halma, Croda International, Prudential, Burberry Group and Standard Chartered gained 1.5 to 2.3%.

Metlen Energy & Metals fell more than 5%. GSK ended 1.6% down, and Airtel Africa closed lower by 1.04%. Hikma Pharmaceuticals, Diageo and BAE Systems also closed weak.

In the German market, Siemens Energy gained about 5%. Heidelberg Materials rallied nearly 3.5%. Commerzbank, Siemens, Continental, Volkswagen, Fresenius Medical Care, Daimler Truck Holding, Deutsche Bank and BMW gained 1 to 1.7%.

SAP closed lower by about 3.5%. Beiersdorf, Adidas and Deutsche Telekom lost 1 to 1.5%.

In the French market, Accor climbed more than 7%. The hospitality major, which announced on Thursday that revenue per room rose 0.8% in the the third quarter to Euro 78, also said that it is evaulating the possibility of an initial public offering for the Ennismore lifestyle hotel and restaurant entity in which the company holds a major stake.

Sanofi gained about 2.5% after its third-quarter earnings beat forecasts. Edenred, Stellantis, Schneider Electric, Legrand, ArcelorMittal and Saint Gobain closed higher by 1 to 3%.

Kering ended nearly 4% down. Thales, STMicroElectronics, Vinci, Orange, Publicis Groupe, LVMH and Dassault Systemes also closed notably lower.

Safran lost about 1.1%. The aerospace group raised its full year forecasts but warned of a residual hit from tariffs on its bottom line.

Data from the Office for National Statistics showed UK retail sales advanced 0.5% in September from the previous month, confounding expectations for a decline of 0.2%. Sales had climbed 0.6% in August. The increase marked the fourth consecutive rise and took the total volume to the highest level since July 2022.

On a yearly basis, retail sales volume grew at a faster pace of 1.5% after rising 0.7% in August. The rate was also better than forecast of 0.6%.

Elsewhere, survey results from market research group GfK showed that the British consumer sentiment improved moderately in October.

The consumer confidence index rose to -17 from -19 in September. Four measures were up and one was down from the previous month.

Data from S&P Global showed the S&P Global UK Composite PMI rose to 51.1 in October from the four-month low of 50.1 in the previous month, above the consensus of a 50.6. Activity in the services sector rose services sector grew with the index climbing to 51.1 in the month from 50.8 in September. The Manufacturing PMI rose to 49.6 from 46.2.

Data from S&P Global showed the HCOB Flash Germany Composite PMI increased to 53.8 in October from 52 in September, pointing to the strongest growth in private sector activity since May 2023, mostly due to a solid increase in services business activity.

The Services PMI increased to a two-and-a-half year high of 54.5, up from 51.5 a month earlier. The Manufacturing PMI edged up slightly to 49.6 from 49.5%.

Eurozone business activity growth hit a 17-month high in October, with Composite PMI rising to 52.2 from 51.2, driven by services.

Data from S&P Global showed the HCOB France Composite PMI declined to 46.8 in October from 48.1 in the previous month, according to preliminary estimates. This marked the 14th straight month of contraction in private sector activity and the sharpest since February.

The Services PMI dropped to 47.1 from 48.5% in September, while the manufacturing PMI edged up slightly to 48.3 from 48.2.

Eurozone business activity growth hit a 17-month high in October, with Composite PMI rising to 52.2 from 51.2, driven by services.