European markets saw a rise on Friday as investors responded positively to fresh economic data from the UK and awaited a second US inflation report for the week.
Leading indexes across Europe showed notable gains, with the FTSE 100, DAX, CAC 40 Index, FTSE MIB, and IBEX 35 Index all recording increases in their values.
The Stoxx 600 index was particularly strong, climbing 0.9% in early trading, with sectors such as construction, media and retail experiencing gains of over 1.3%. This upward trend in European markets comes as the UK economy showed signs of resilience, with its gross domestic product for November expanding by 0.3%, surpassing expectations.
Meanwhile, in the United States, futures remained steady overnight. This calm follows the release of December’s US inflation report, which indicated a 0.3% monthly increase in consumer prices and a 3.4% rise year-on-year, slightly higher than economists’ forecasts.
In contrast to Europe’s positive performance, Asian markets experienced a downturn, driven by a drop in China’s annual exports for the first time in seven years. However, Japan’s stock market defied this trend, continuing its record rally and offering a mixed picture of the broader Asian market.
