A day after Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke was re-elected for a second term, the major European averages are trading in positive territory in early afternoon trading, ahead of the release of some key reports from the U.S. Crude for March is trading up $0.10 per barrel and gold is down $0.5 an ounce.
On the economic front, the Nationwide Building Society said Friday that house prices in the U.K. rose 1.2% month-on-month in January, after rising an upwardly revised 0.5% in December. Economists had forecast house price growth, which has witnessed an upside since May 2009, to ease to 0.3% in January. On an annual basis, the house price index climbed 8.6% in January after a 5.9% increase in the previous month. The rise in January marked the fourth consecutive increase after prices stabilized in September.
A survey conducted by market research firm GfK NOP showed that British consumer confidence improved moderately in January, compared to the previous month. The consumer confidence index stood at minus 17 in January compared to minus 19 in the previous month. The annual moving average also improved and stood at minus 24, the firm said. A year ago, the index stood at minus 37.
The European Central Bank said Friday that the eurozone's M3 money supply decreased 0.2% year-on-year in December after a 0.3% fall in the previous month. Economists were looking for a 0.5% decline. The M2 money supply growth rate stood at 1.6%, compared to 1.8% in the preceding month, and the M1 money supply growth rate slowed to 12.3% from 12.5%.
Further, the Eurostat said the seasonally adjusted jobless rate in the euro area rose to 10% in December from 9.9% in the previous month. The jobless rate for November was revised from 10% reported initially. For the euro area, this was the highest rate since August 1998. Economists expected the jobless rate to be 10.1%. A year ago, the jobless rate was 8.2%.
In the U.S., fourth-quarter GDP figures and the Reuters/University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index are due for release later in the day.
The U.K.'s FTSE opened at 5,146 and witnessed some choppy trading in the early session. The index pared all the gains later and is now on the recovery path. The German DAX opened at 5,566 and moved sideways for most of the session before some hectic selling erased all the gains. France's CAC 40 opened at 3689 and witnessed some volatile trading early on. The index is modestly rising.
The FTSE 100 is up 0.74%, compared to the DAX rising 1.02%, and the CAC 40 gaining 0.84%.
In the U.K., gold miner Fresnillo is leading the losers by shedding 2.51%, followed by Royal Bank of Scotland falling 2.11%. Life insurers Legal & General Group and Prudential are down 1.30% and 1.19%, respectively.
Restaurant group Whitbread is climbing 2.63%, a day after its investor day. HSBC Holdings and Standard Chartered are rising 2.22% and 1.46%, respectively, and Barclays is up 1.83%. Among miners, Rio Tinto, BHP Billiton and Antofagasta are gaining. Vedanta Resources is down 1.19%.
In Germany, Commerzbank is losing 3.31% and Deutsche Boerse is falling 1.10%. Car makers Bayerische Motoren Werke St., Daimler and Volkswagen are gaining. Infineon Technologies is adding 0.78% after reporting a first-quarter profit earlier today.
In France, water utility Veolia Envirinnement is down 1.20% and oil and gas company Technip is losing 1.12%. Media firm Lagardere is rising 2.39%, followed by Total gaining 1.95%. Bank stocks Societe Generale and Dexia are seeing upside. Drug maker Sanofi Aventis and EADS, the maker of Airbus, are gaining 1.70% and 1.12%, respectively.
Across Asia, most major indices ended in the red, barring India's BSE Sensex. Japan's Nikkei 225 closed the day's session lower by 2.08%, Shanghai Composite ended down 0.16% and Australia's All Ordinaries settled 2.15% lower. The BSE Sensex closed higher by 0.31%.
In the U.S., markets are set to open higher with the Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures firmly in the green. The major averages closed in negative territory Thursday. The Dow lost 1.1%, the Nasdaq declined 1.9% and the S&P 500 fell 1.2%.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.