European Shares Advance As German Inflation Eases

European stocks were modestly higher on Friday as investors assessed the latest inflation data from Germany and awaited key U.S. employment report later in the day to confirm bets that the Federal Reserve is at peak rates.

According to the final estimate, Germany’s consumer price inflation (CPI) fell to its lowest in 29 months in November, matching provisional estimates released last week.

CPI fell to an annual 3.2 percent last month from 3.8 percent in October, bolstering the case for a peak in eurozone interest rates.

The pan European STOXX 600 was up 0.4 percent at 470.81 after declining 0.3 percent on Thursday.

The German DAX rose 0.3 percent, France’s CAC 40 jumped 0.8 percent and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 was up half a percent.

Oil & gas giant BP Plc rose 1.3 percent and peer Shell added 0.8 percent in London as oil prices jumped around 2 percent in Asian trade after calls from Saudi Arabia and Russia for OPEC+ members to join output cuts.

Miner Anglo American plunged 5 percent after it announced plans to slash production in a bid to cut costs.

Monks Investment Trust gained 1 percent after reporting narrower loss in first half of the year.

Fintech company IG Group rallied 2 percent as it announced the appointment of Breon Corcoran as its new chief executive officer, effective January 29, 2024.

Berkeley Group Holdings fell 2.2 percent after it flagged persisting housing demand woes.

Vivendi shares rallied 2.7 percent in Paris. The media conglomerate is set to replace digital payment group Worldline on the CAC 40 index, effective from Dec. 18. Shares of the latter were up 0.7 percent.

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