European stocks were broadly higher on Friday, as regional PMI data and U.K. retail sales figures supported the view that the economic recovery will be fast and full.
The pan European Stoxx 600 rose 0.3 percent to 443.11 after rallying 1.3 percent on Thursday.
The German DAX inched up 0.2 percent and France’s CAC 40 index added 0.3 percent while the U.K.’s FTSE 100 was down about 0.3 percent.
Swiss luxury goods maker Richemont jumped 4.5 percent after saying it planned to double its dividend.
Lufthansa slumped 6.7 percent after the Thiele family, the second-largest shareholder, sold more than half its stake in the German airline group.
CTS Eventim shares surged 5.3 percent. The concert promoter and ticketing company said ticket sales in Germany have begun to pick up for major and mid-sized artists and events.
BMW rose 0.8 percent. The automaker said it expects an antitrust fine from the European Union will be much smaller than anticipated two years ago.
Banks fell broadly in London, with HSBC Holdings and Standard Chartered falling around 1 percent.
Miners traded mixed, while oil firms BP Plc and Royal Dutch Shell were marginally higher.
Electra Private Equity surged 4.7 percent after the private equity firm unveiled plans to list TGI Fridays and Hotter Shoes.
In economic releases, the euro area private sector activity grew the most in more than three years in May as economies continued to open up from virus restrictions, flash survey data from IHS Markit showed.
The composite output index rose to 56.9 from 53.8 in the previous month. The score was expected to climb moderately to 55.1.
U.K. retail sales expanded 9.2 percent month-on-month in April, faster than the 5.1 percent increase in March and the economists’ forecast of +4.5 percent as non-essential stores reopened, official data showed. This was the biggest increase since June 2020, when sales were up 13.9 percent.
On a yearly basis, retail sales volume grew sharply by 42.4 percent, after rising 7.2 percent in March.
Earlier in the day, survey results from the market research group GfK showed that confidence among consumers bounced back to its pre-lockdown level in May. The consumer sentiment index rose six points to -9 in May.
Separately, IHS Markit said that U.K. private sector is growing at its fastest pace in at least two decades this month.
Business News
European Shares Broadly Higher; PMI Data In Focus
2021-05-21 09:40:38
