German stocks declined on Friday as the dollar strengthened following remarks from three senior Federal Reserve officials, who indicated that U.S. interest rates are likely to remain elevated for an extended period.
Economic data from China contributed to market fluctuations, with industrial growth accelerating in April, while both retail sales for April and fixed asset investment from January through April unexpectedly decelerated, according to official reports.
The DAX index dropped by 97 points, or 0.5%, to 18,641, continuing its slide after a 0.7% decrease in the previous session.
Eurostat is expected to release the final euro area inflation data for April later today. Preliminary estimates indicated that inflation remained stable at 2.4% in April, while core inflation eased to 2.7% from 2.9% in March.
Earlier in the day, European Central Bank Vice-President Luis de Guindos projected that Eurozone inflation will approach the target of 2% by 2025.
