European equity markets were trading higher on Friday to cap a positive week for stocks.
Germany’s DAX was higher by 0.13% while France’s CAC 40 gained 0.7% at 1:30 p.m. London time. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 was the only major European index to trade lower, down by 0.35%.
Meanwhile, the pan-European Stoxx 600 index was in positive territory, up by 0.35%.
Among the biggest gainers on Friday were shares of Burberry, which jumped 12% after the company reported a shallower-than-expected dip in sales in the fiscal third quarter. Other luxury stocks including Moncler, Swatch and Christian Dior were also trading higher.
Novo Nordisk shares also rose by more than 9% after the company said a new clinical trial result showed that one of its treatments led to a weight loss of 22% among people living with obesity.
Among the stocks falling was that of telecommunications equipment maker Ericsson. Shares of the company fell the most in the Stoxx Europe 600 index on Friday as the company missed estimates on both the top and bottom lines for the fourth quarter of 2024. The stock was trading down 9.4% at 11:30 a.m.
Overnight in Asia, stocks climbed higher after the S&P 500 hit a record high in Thursday’s trading session in the U.S. as President Donald Trump called for lower interest rates and cheaper oil prices.
Speaking via video to an assembly of global leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, the new president in a wide-ranging policy speech did not mention the Federal Reserve by name but made clear he would seek lower rates.
“I’ll demand that interest rates drop immediately,” Trump said. “And likewise, they should be dropping all over the world. Interest rates should follow us all over.”
The Bank of Japan raised the policy rate by 25 basis points to 0.5% — the highest since 2008 and in line with economists’ expectations. Following the decision, the Japanese yen weakened marginally to trade at 155.18 against the dollar.
Investors are also likely to be looking ahead to the Fed’s FOMC meeting on Wednesday with no change expected to interest rates. Elsewhere in China, equity markets will be closed from Tuesday for the Lunar New Year holiday.
Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2025/01/24/european-markets-open-to-close-earnings-data-and-news.html
