By Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- European stock markets headed for the
strongest weekly gain since April on Friday, as the U.S. Federal
Reserve's decision to taper its bond buying continued to spur
optimism about the U.S. economy.
The Stoxx Europe 600 index rose 0.3% to 320.44, on track for a
3.5% weekly gain.
On Thursday, the benchmark saw its strongest rally since early
September after the Fed late Wednesday decided to slow its monthly
asset purchases, showing confidence in the underlying strength of
the U.S. economy. The decision came after European markets had
closed.
In Europe on Friday, consumer-confidence data from both the U.K.
and Germany were in focus. In Germany, GfK's forward-looking
consumer-sentiment indicator rose to 7.6 points in January from 7.4
points in December, to hit its highest level since August 2007.
The picture was less bright in the U.K., however, where the
December reading fell to -13 from -12, marking a third straight
month of declines in consumer mood. The data follow retail figures
released on Thursday, which showed shoppers spent less that
expected in November.
On a more upbeat note in the U.K., the Office for National
Statistics said the economy grew more than previously thought over
the past year and revised up the year-on-year growth in gross
domestic product to 1.9% from an earlier estimate of 1.5%, largely
due to higher consumer spending. Quarter-on-quarter, the ONS
confirmed growth of 0.8%.
Meanwhile, Standard & Poor's cut its long-term credit rating
on the European Union to AA+ from AAA, citing concerns about
contentious budget talks.
Among notable movers in Europe on Friday, SKF AB slid 5.9% after
the Swedish ball-bearing maker said it will take a provision of 3
billion ($456 million) Swedish kronor related to a European
Commission competition probe.
Shares of Vestas Wind Systems AS (VWDRY) climbed 1% after the
wind-turbine maker received a 220 MW order in the U.S.
For the country-specific indexes, Germany's DAX 30 index rose
0.5% to 9,378.06, on track for the highest closing level in almost
three weeks.
France's CAC 40 index rose 0.1% to 4,179.46 and the U.K.'s FTSE
100 index added 0.2% to 6,596.10.
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