European stock markets ended mixed yesterday, with London gaining on data showing Britain may escape a triple-dip recession while Frankfurt retreated on disappointing trade data.
London’s FTSE 100 index of leading companies ended the day with a gain of 0.58% to 6,313.21 points, Paris’ Cac 40 edged out an 0.11% rise to 3,670.72 points in choppy trade, while in Frankfurt the Dax 30 dropped 0.33% to 7,637.51 points.
“A weaker than expected Chinese inflation number and a better than expected earnings report from Alcoa in the US has given basic resource stocks a lift today, helping push the London market higher however broader European markets have struggled for traction, with the Dax in particular underperforming,” said CMC Markets UK analyst Michael Hewson.
Beijing unveiled data showing inflation at 2.1% in March, well down from the 10-month-high of 3.2% seen the month before and below forecasts for 2.4%.
London trading was also lifted by news that manufacturing output rose 0.8% in February from January, dampening speculation that the economy returned to recession in the first quarter of 2013.
However, separate data showed that Britain’s trade deficit widened in February, largely because of a 1.1% slide in exports amid weaker demand from the crisis-hit eurozone.
Trading in Frankfurt was dampened by data showing that German exports fell in February, in another sign that Europe’s biggest economy has not fully recovered from a dip at the end of last year.
The European single currency increased to $1.3087 from $1.3005 late in New York on Monday.
The yen slumped further against the dollar, after last week’s Bank of Japan stimulus news. The greenback surged overnight to ¥99.66 — the highest level since May 2009. It stood at ¥98.93 in European deals, down from 99.36 late on Monday.
A strong start of the corporate earnings season also lifted sentiment in early European trading, with Alcoa reporting after markets closed a 59-percent rise in year-over-year earnings, pointing to strong efficiency gains and a slightly tighter supply market.
Alcoa said profits came in at $149mn, up from $94mn in the same period last year. However, sequential profits were down from $242mn in the prior quarter.
But the glow quickly wore off, with US stocks wobbly in early trading.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average showed a gain of 0.12% to 14,631.70 points in midday trading.
The broad-based S&P 500 added 0.09% to 1,564.52 points, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index edged up 0.3% to 3,223.33 points.
