European stocks concluded Friday on a mixed note, with several markets near multi-month, multi-week, or even record all-time highs. Investors reacted positively to regional and U.S. economic data.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 edged up by 0.09%. The UK's FTSE 100, Germany's DAX, and France's CAC 40 increased by 0.04%, 0.03%, and 0.13% respectively. Switzerland's SMI saw a rise of 0.15%.
Elsewhere in Europe, markets in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and Turkey closed higher, while Iceland, the Netherlands, and Russia ended weaker.
In the UK market, Londonmetric Property, Entain, and Land Securities advanced between 2% and 2.6%. Severn Trent, Unite Group, Segro, Antofagasta, Ashtead Group, Vistry Group, Barclays, Haleon, HSBC Holdings, Coca-Cola HBC, and Hargreaves Lansdown rose between 0.8% and 1.5%. Conversely, Fresnillo dipped by 2.34%, while Whitbread, ICG, Anglo American Plc, BP, Burberry Group, Shell, Relx, and DS Smith declined between 1% and 1.75%.
In Germany, Siemens Energy, Vonovia, and Puma gained between 1.5% and 1.8%. Commerzbank, E.ON, Deutsche Post, and Deutsche Bank saw moderate gains, whereas Zalando fell by nearly 2.5%. SAP, Rheinmetall, Beiersdorf, and MTU Aero Engines also closed lower, albeit with less severe losses.
Over in France, Crédit Agricole jumped by more than 2.5%. Unibail-Rodamco gained about 1.6%, while Saint-Gobain, Engie, Capgemini, Société Générale, BNP Paribas, Edenred, and Danone also finished higher. Pernod Ricard, Airbus Group, Orange, TotalEnergies, Essilor, Renault, L’Oréal, and LVMH lost between 0.4% and 1.7%.
On the economic front, Eurozone inflation fell sharply in August to its lowest level since mid-2021 due to falling energy costs, according to Eurostat data. This has spurred calls to reduce interest rates in the region. Consumer prices slowed to 2.2% in August from 2.6% in July.
Separately, seasonally adjusted unemployment in the Eurozone dropped by 0.2 percentage points to 6.4% in July.
In France, inflation eased to a three-year low in August, with French consumer prices rising by 1.9%, down from 2.3% in the previous month, marking the first instance below the European Central Bank's 2% target since August 2021. However, the French economy grew more slowly than initially thought in the second quarter, with GDP increasing by only 0.2% from the first quarter.
In the UK, house prices fell for the first time in four months in August, declining by 0.2%, reversing a 0.3% increase in July, according to data from mortgage lender Nationwide Building Society.
Despite weak economic activity, German unemployment grew less than expected in August, maintaining a jobless rate of 6%, the same as in July and June. According to Destatis, Germany's import prices rose for the second straight month in July, increasing by 0.9% on a yearly basis following a 0.7% rise in June.
UK mortgage approvals hit a 22-month high in July as anticipation of further interest rate cuts drew buyers to the housing market. Bank of England data showed net mortgage approvals for house purchases rose to 62,000 in July from 60,600 in June, exceeding economists' forecast of 60,500.
In U.S. economic news, the Commerce Department released readings on consumer price inflation, preferred by the Federal Reserve. The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index increased by 0.2% in July following a 0.1% uptick in June, aligning with expectations. The annual growth rates of both the PCE price index and the core PCE price index remained unchanged at 2.5% and 2.6%, respectively.
