(Alliance News) - Blue-chips London opened on the up on Friday, shaking off poor UK retail sales data, while counterparts in Frankfurt climbed despite a pair of tepid readings of the German economy.
The FTSE 100 index added 55.41 points, 0.7%, at 8,204.68. The FTSE 250 rose 120.58 points, 0.6%, at 20,470.50, and the AIM All-Share rose 3.92 points, 0.5%, at 729.74.
The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.6% at 824.82, the Cboe UK 250 rose 0.9% at 17,960.33, and the Cboe Small Companies was flat at 17,960.33.
The CAC 40 in Paris added 0.3%, and the DAX 40 in Frankfurt advanced 0.6%.
According to the Office for National Statistics, UK retail sales volumes rose by 2.4% on-year in October, easing from a 3.2% climb in September and falling short of the FXStreet cited consensus of 3.4%.
September's growth was downwardly revised from an initially reported 3.9% rise.
Retail sales fell 0.7% in October from September. They had edged up 0.1% in September from August, downwardly revised from an 0.3% climb.
The latest data undershot consensus. A lesser decline of 0.3% was expected, according to FXStreet.
"Non-food stores sales volumes fell on the month as retailers reported that budget uncertainty affected sales," the ONS said.
AJ Bell analyst Danni Hewson commented: "Retailers had already sounded the alarm, expressing concern that pre-Budget jitters were denting consumer confidence and that would-be shoppers were putting off spending decisions just in case their finances took an unexpected hit."
Consumer confidence picked up this month, however, according to GfK's long-running tracker. Giving consumers some food for thought, however, Ofgem has confirmed UK household energy bills are to rise again from January 1 as it announced a 1.2% increase to its price cap.
The regulator said the increase would see the typical bill for a household in England, Scotland and Wales increasing to GBP1,738-a-year, from GBP1,717, or by around GBP1.75-a-month.
The pound was quoted at USD1.2565 early Friday, down from USD1.2605 at the time of the London equities close on Thursday. The euro stood at USD1.0459, down from USD1.0491. Against the yen, the dollar was trading at JPY154.53, flat from JPY154.52.
The euro fell to its lowest level since October 2023. The pound traded at its weakest level since May, falling as low as USD1.2552.
German economic growth was more tepid than expected in the third-quarter, Destatis reported on Friday.
The German economy edged up just 0.1% quarter-on-quarter in the three months to September 30, averting a summer recession. Growth was downwardly revised from an initially reported 0.2% rise.
The German economy had shrunk 0.3% in the second-quarter, after rising 0.2% in the first.
Year-on-year, German gross domestic product was up 0.1% in the third-quarter, in line with the growth seen in the second-quarter. However, on a calendar-adjusted basis, GDP shrunk 0.3% on-year in the third-quarter.
"There was one working day more than in the same period a year earlier," Destatis explained.
The data on Friday will do little to calm growth fears for Europe's largest economy.
Analysts at Dutch bank ING commented: "Today's headline number shouldn't be taken as a sign of a rebound, but rather as a confirmation that the German economy is stuck in stagnation and is now hardly any larger than at the start of the pandemic more than four years ago."
What's more, the German private sector sank deeper into the doldrums in November, in yet another tepid reading of Europe's largest economy on Friday.
The latest Hamburg Commercial Bank's flash composite purchasing managers' index ell to 47.3 points in November, from October's final tally of 48.6. The latest reading slipped further below the 50 point neutral mark, suggesting the pace of decline picked up. The preliminary PMI reading represented a nine-month-low, survey publisher S&P Global noted.
The composite reading is calculated using manufacturing and services data. The services PMI fell below growth territory for the first time since February, landing at 49.4 points in the Friday flash, from the final 51.6 in October.
The manufacturing PMI remained in negative territory, but edged up to 43.2 points from 43.0. It was a four-month-high for the PMI.
ING analysts added: "A combination of factors are contributing to the strong dollar, and with geopolitical risks on the rise, we believe it may be risky to try and pick a bottom in EUR/USD just yet.
Incidentally, PMIs may be decent for the eurozone but grim for Germany, which could be enough for markets to price in more ECB easing."
Brent oil was quoted at USD74.24 a barrel early Friday, as geopolitical tensions continue to simmer, rising from USD73.52 at the time of the London equities close on Thursday. Gold rose to USD2,698.53 an ounce from USD2,665.01.
Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened to strike the UK with a new ballistic missile after using the weapon to hit a target in Ukraine.
Downing Street condemned Putin for further escalating the conflict by using a ballistic missile with a range of "several thousand kilometres" against the city of Dnipro.
Putin suggested the missile could be used to hit Kyiv's allies who have given Ukraine permission to use Western-supplied weapons to hit targets within Russia.
The UK is believed to have allowed its Storm Shadow missiles to be used by Ukrainian forces within the Kursk region of Russia, while the US has given permission for its ATACMS weapons to be fired at targets in Putin's country.
In London, the bulk of the FTSE 100 traded higher, with gold miner Endeavour leading the way with a 2.5% on a rising precious metal price.
Elsewhere, Games Workshop topped the FTSE 250 with a 14% surge.
The miniature wargames maker said trading over the past two months has been "ahead of expectations".
It expects revenue in the six months to December 1 to rise 10% to GBP260 million from GBP235.6 million a year prior. Pretax profit of GBP120 million is expected, a rise of 25% from GBP96.1 million. Games Workshop releases half-year results on January 14.
Elsewhere, National World jumped 28% to 19.25 pence, on a simmering takeover saga. The multimedia company, which owns the Yorkshire Post, is now worth GBP51.5 million.
Its shareholder Media Concierge said it submitted a takeover proposal worth GBP56.2 million, 21p per share, at the end of last month. The deal implies an enterprise value of approximately GBP43.2 million.
But National World has not given the suitor any "substantive engagement to date" and Media Concierge urged shareholders to push it to "engage constructively".
"Media Concierge believes that the possible offer provides a highly attractive and deliverable opportunity for National World shareholders to realise their investment at a substantial premium in cash," it said, noting it was a 40% premium to the Thursday closing price.
The offer is for shares not already owned by Media Concierge, affiliates and firms acting in concert. It means the bid is for a 72% chunk of National World.
In New York on Thursday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.1%, the S&P 500 added 0.5% and the Nasdaq Composite closed flat.
In China on Friday, the Shanghai Composite slumped 3.1%. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong fell 1.9%. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 added 0.7%, while Sydney's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.9%.
By Eric Cunha, Alliance News news editor
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