Investing.com - European stocks were higher on Friday, as Thursday's euro zone inflation data fuelled expectations for fresh easing measures by the European Central Bank and as upbeat economic reports from the U.S. supported market sentiment.
During European morning trade, the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 eased up 0.03%, France’s CAC 40 rose 0.34%, while Germany’s DAX gained 0.41%.
Concerns over the threat of deflation in the euro zone persisted after revised data on Thursday showed that bloc's consumer price inflation rose by 0.3% in September, in line with expectations.
The rate has now been below 1% for 12 straight months, well under the European Central Bank's target of near but just under 2%.
In the U.S., the Department of Labor reported on Thursday that the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending October 11 decreased by 23,000 to a 14-year low of 264,000 from the previous week’s total of 287,000.
A separate report showed that U.S. industrial production climbed 1.0% last month, beating expectations for a 0.4% rise.
Market sentiment also improved as St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard said the U.S. central bank may want to maintain its bond buying for now given a drop in inflation expectations.
Financial stocks were broadly higher, as French lenders BNP Paribas (PARIS:BNPP) and Societe Generale (PARIS:SOGN) gained 0.46% and 1.27%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank (XETRA:DBKGn) rose 0.21%.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy's Unicredit (MILAN:CRDI) added 0.28%, while Spanish banks BBVA (MADRID:BBVA) and Banco Santander (MADRID:SAN) advanced 0.76% and 0.88% respectively.
Elsewhere, Accor (PARIS:ACCP) saw shares jump 1.45% after the hotel chain reported sales growth that beat analyst forecasts.
In London, FTSE 100 added 0.13%, led by sharp gains in energy stocks.
Royal Dutch Shell B (LONDON:RDSb) jumped 1.31% and Royal Dutch Shell A (LONDON:RDSa) rallied 1.51%, while Tullow Oil (LONDON:TLW) saw shares jump 1.94% and Petrofac (LONDON:PFC) surged 2.28%.
In the financial sector, stocks were mostly higher. Shares in Lloyds Banking (LONDON:LLOY) inched up 0.02% and Barclays (LONDON:BARC) added 0.26%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland (LONDON:RBS) rose 0.30% and HSBC Holdings (LONDON:HSBA) advanced 0.70%.
Meanwhile, Rolls-Royce (LONDON:RR) led losses on the index with shares plummeting 7.66% after the luxury carmaker cut its sales outlook for the full year, saying revenue will fall rather than remain unchanged.
Mining stocks were also on the downside, as Rio Tinto (LONDON:RIO) dropped 0.81% and Glencore Xstrata (LONDON:GLEN) tumbled 0.96%, while rivals Fresnillo (LONDON:FRES) and Randgold Resources (LONDON:RRS) plunged 1.50% and 2.02% respectively.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a higher open. The Dow 30 futures pointed to a 0.25% rise, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.31% gain, while the NASDAQ 100 futures indicated a 0.28% advance.
Later in the day, rhe U.S. was to produce reports on building permits and housing starts, as well as a preliminary report on consumer sentiment.