European stocks closed higher on Friday, as regional markets reopened following a closure for the Christmas holiday.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 index provisionally ended the session 0.6% higher, with most sectors and major bourses in positive territory. The index was up 0.89% on the week after two weeks in the red.
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Healthcare stocks were among those seeing gains on Friday, with the sector lifted by a 2% boost to Novo Nordisk's share price. The Danish pharmaceutical giant continued its recovery from a major selloff that saw shares plummet 20% in a single session last week.
Shares of oil tanker firm Frontline were also boosted on Friday, closing 2.5% higher. It comes as oil prices are on track for weekly gains and economic growth forecasts for China, the world's largest oil importer, were revised upward by the World Bank amid pledges for more fiscal stimulus from Beijing.
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Norwegian oil and gas company Vaar Energi also rose up the Stoxx 600 index after adding 3%, while Finnish fuel producer Neste topped the index with gains of 5.7%.
Meanwhile, Swedish online gambling firm Evolution saw gains of 3.7%, recovering from losses seen earlier this week after the company was put under review by the U.K. Gambling Commission over links to unlicensed operators.
At the other end of the index, Delivery Hero shed 5.4% after Taiwan's antitrust regulator on Wednesday blocked Uber's $950 million bid to acquire the firm's Foodpanda business.
Money Report
Elsewhere, investors are monitoring economic data out of China, where official figures showed industrial profits in the world's second biggest economy contracted for the fourth consecutive month in November.
The data print came a day after the World Bank raised its growth forecasts for China in 2024 and 2025, but warned that the country's economy would remain under pressure, given muted business confidence and ongoing uncertainty in the troubled Chinese property sector.
Markets were in mixed territory overnight in Asia, as traders reacted to the latest Chinese data print, as well as recent inflation numbers out of Japan. In an update on Friday, official figures showed core inflation in the city of Tokyo was at 3% in November, up from 2.6% in October.
Stateside, stocks declined on Friday, giving back most of the gains in the holiday-shortened week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 430 points, falling for the first time in six sessions. The S&P 500 fell 1.3%, while the Nasdaq Composite slid 2%.
Back in Europe, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier dissolved the country's parliament on Friday to pave the way for elections in February, after Chancellor Olaf Scholz's coalition government was ousted earlier this month. Yields on Germany's 10-year Bunds were up by 5 basis points at 1:36 p.m. in London, reaching 2.384% — their highest level in a month.
