The German market is notably up in afternoon trading Friday, led by automakers, as the less than expected fall in U.S. unemployment in August boosted sentiment.
Crude for October delivery is trading up $0.29 at $75.31 per barrel and December gold is declining $11.4 at $1242 an ounce.
In economic news, final data from Markit Economics showed that German services sector grew at the fastest pace in three years in August, though the pace of expansion was slower than initially estimated. The final Services business activity index showed a reading of 57.2, down from 58.5 estimated in the flash report. In July, the PMI was at 56.5.
UK's service sector continued to expand for the sixteenth successive month in August, but the rate of growth eased from July, a survey by Markit Economics revealed. The headline seasonally adjusted Business Activity Index was at 51.3 in August, down from 53.1 in July.
Further, Eurozone service sector activity rose to a three-month high in August, led by strong growth in Germany and France. Markit Economics said the service sector purchasing managers' index rose to a seasonally adjusted 55.9 from 55.8 in July, and also higher than the preliminary reading of 55.6.
Meanwhile, French service sector activity dropped to a four month low in August, a final report from Markit Economics showed. The purchasing managers index for services decreased to 60.4 in August from 61.1 in the previous month. The flash reading for August was 59.9.
In the U.S., employment in August fell by much less than economists had been expecting, according to a report released by the Labor Department. The report showed that non-farm payroll employment fell by 54,000 jobs in August. Economists had expected employment to fall by about 120,000 jobs. However, the unemployment rate edged up to 9.6% in August from 9.5% in July, in line with economist estimates.
After opening slightly higher at 6,092, the DAX index has remained in the green. The index is currently rising 1.31%.
Truck maker MAN is leading the gainers by adding 2.08%. Volkswagen is gaining 1.14%, Daimler is rising 0.62% and Bayerische Motoren Werke is advancing 0.10%.
Business software maker SAP is rising 1.21%. Lufthansa is rising 1.05%. Insurer Allianz and steel maker ThyssenKrupp are gathering 0.8% and 0.7%, respectively.
Fresenius Medical Care and chip maker Infineon Technologies are each losing 1.8%. Commerzbank is sliding 0.95% and Deutsche Bank is declining 0.6%. Deutsche Boerse and footwear maker Adidas are each dropping 0.8%.
Elsewhere in Europe, the UK's FTSE 100 is adding 1.24% and the French CAC 40 is rising 1.80%.
Across Asia/Pacific, major markets had a mixed outing. Australia's All Ordinaries ended up 0.32% and Japan's Nikkei 225 gained 0.57%. However, China's Shanghai Composite Index slipped 0.01% and India's BSE Sensex retreated 0.09%.
In the U.S., futures indicate a higher open on Wall Street. In the previous session, the Dow gained 0.5%, the Nasdaq advanced 1.1% and the S&P 500 rose 0.9%.
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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.