Investing.com -- European equity markets traded in a mixed fashion Friday, with investors digesting weak economic data as well as the intensifying conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
At 07:15 ET (12:15 GMT), Germany’s DAX rose 0.3% and the UK’s FTSE 100 gained 0.9%, while France’s CAC 40 dropped 0.1%.
Eurozone business activity slumped
Eurozone business activity took a surprisingly sharp turn for the worse this month as the bloc's dominant services industry contracted and manufacturing sank deeper into recession, a survey showed on Friday.
The preliminary composite eurozone Purchasing Managers' Index, compiled by S&P Global, sank to a 10-month low of 48.1 in November, below the 50 mark separating growth from contraction.
“The release has risen from being almost disregarded to a de-facto critical input for policy decision given the Governing Council’s greater focus on forward looking indicators of growth,” ING said.
Earlier in the session data showed that Germany's economy, the largest in the eurozone, grew less than previously estimated in the third quarter, expanding by 0.1% in the third quarter of 2024, down from a preliminary reading of 0.2% growth.
Germany's economy expanded at a slower pace than initially estimated in the third quarter, according to data released by the statistics office on Friday.
The country’s gross domestic product grew by just 0.1% compared to the previous quarter, a slight downward revision from the earlier estimate of 0.2% growth.
Russia escalates conflict
Sentiment has be hit by the escalation of the conflict between UKraine and Russia, with On Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin reportedly authorizing the launch of a hypersonic ballistic missile at the Ukrainian city of Dnipro.
This followed the decision of the US and UK to enable Kyiv to target Russian territory with Western weaponry.
This strike represents escalation in the nearly three-year-long conflict and follows recent indications that Russia has reduced its threshold for deploying nuclear weapons.
Thales slumps after SFO investigation
In the corporate sector, Thales (EPA:TCFP) stock fell 6.5% after Britain’s Serious Fraud Office said it has launched a formal investigation into allegations of bribery and corruption involving the multinational aviation and defense electronics giant.
Vinci (EPA:SGEF) stock fell 0.2% after the French construction company issued a new set of divisional guidance for its Energies segment, surpassing existing market expectations.
Games Workshop (LON:GAW) stock surged more than 16% on Friday, after the games manufacturer reported an upbeat trading update for the six months ending Dec. 1.
Crude prices set for weekly gains
Crude prices fell Friday, handing back some of the weekly gains amid increasing concerns the conflict between Russia and Ukraine will lead to supply disruptions.
By 07:15 ET, the US crude futures (WTI) dropped 0.7% to $69.53 a barrel, while the Brent contract fell 0.7% to $73.71 a barrel.
Both contracts were trading around 4% higher for the week, the strongest weekly performance since late September, with traders attaching a greater risk premium to crude after Kyiv began using Western-made long-range missiles.
(Navamya Acharya contributed to this article.)