European stock markets closed mixed Friday as the FTSE in London was down 0.43% and Germany’s DAX dropped 0.16%, while France’s CAC was up 0.15%, Stoxx Europe 600 increased 0.02% and the Swiss Market Index advanced 0.62%.
The eurozone’s seasonally adjusted gross domestic product remained stable in Q4 sequentially. The GDP had decreased 0.1% in the prior quarter in the euro area and had remained stable in the EU, according to revised statistics from Eurostat.
The number of employed people in the area rose 0.3% in the euro area and by 0.2% in the EU quarter over quarter in Q4, compared with the 0.2% increase in the previous quarter in both zones.
In Germany, producer prices of industrial products fell 4.4% year over year in January, the Federal Statistical Office said. This is the first result following the rebasing of the index of producer prices of industrial products to the new base year 2021.
Industrial production in the country rose 1% month over month in January, after a revised 2% decline in December.
In corporate news, shares of DS Smith climbed 5.2% on London Stock Exchange, after the announcement of a potential takeover of the packaging company by Mondi.
Edenred gained nearly 2% on the CAC after the payment services provider said it will launch a program to buy back up to 300 million euros ($328.1 million) of its shares.
