PARIS (Reuters) - European shares inched higher on Friday, keeping their brisk two-month rally alive as Airbus (PA:AIR) rose 6 percent after posting a sharp rise in operating earnings.
At 0804 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 (FTEU3) index of top European shares was up 0.3 percent at 1,561.60 points, hitting a fresh seven-year high.
The index has surged 14 percent so far this year, boosted by the prospect of the European Central Bank's quantitative easing programme set to start in March.