GLOBAL MARKETS – Europe markets rise ahead of key inflation data

The pan-European Stoxx 600 was 0.27 percent higher, as most major regional bourses and sectors were trading in the green. Tech stocks pulled back 0.62 percent, while mining stocks added 0.89 percent.

The Stoxx 600 had recorded a winning day on Thursday, with tech stocks leading gains as investors considered artificial intelligence heavyweight Nvidia’s latest quarterly earnings report which was released earlier in the week.

A series of key inflation data is slated for Friday in both Europe and the U.S.

France’s preliminary, EU-harmonized consumer price index was 2.2 percent for August on an annual basis, down from the 2.7 percent print of July, the country’s statistics office said Friday. Further inflation figures from Italy and the euro zone are expected later in the day.

That comes after German and Spanish CPI reports released Thursday showed that inflationary pressures in the two countries are easing.

In Germany, preliminary annual headline on an EU-harmonized basis eased more than expected to 2 percent in August, compared with the 2.3 percent forecast and July’s 2.6 percent reading. Spain’s preliminary harmonized inflation came in at 2.4 percent for August, also lower than expected and down from the previous month’s 2.9 percent print.

Investors will closely watch the data for clues about whether another interest rate cut from the European Central Bank could come in September.

Also, on the data front in Europe, the final reading of the French second-quarter gross domestic product reflected 0.2 percent growth, according to the country’s national statistics office, revised down from the preliminary 0.3 percent figure released in July.
 

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