European Shares Gain As Rate Hike Worries Ease

(RTTNews) - European stocks rose on Friday and were set for their longest weekly gaining streak since early December amid hopes that the Federal Reserve is nearing the end of its monetary policy tightening cycle.

Signs of cooling inflation prompted speculation that the Fed and other central banks may postpone or scale back plans for interest rate hikes to support growth.

Figures from Destatis revealed earlier today that Germany's wholesale price inflation slowed to the lowest level in more than two years in March.

Wholesale price inflation eased more-than-expected to 2.0 percent in March from 8.9 percent in February. This was the lowest rate since January 2021, when prices remained flat.

France's consumer price index climbed 5.7 percent year-over-year in March, slower than the 6.3 percent rise in February, the statistical office Insee reported.

That was just above the 5.6 percent growth seen in the flash data published on March 31.

The focus now shifts to U.S. earnings, with big banks including JP Morgan Chase & Co, Wells Fargo and Citigroup reporting their financial results later in the day.

The pan European STOXX 600 was up 0.4 percent at 465.92 after rising 0.4 percent on Thursday.

The German DAX, France's CAC 40 and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 were up between 0.2 percent and 0.3 percent.

William Hill owner 888 Holdings soared 18 percent after it reported a double-digit rise in its annual revenue and higher adjusted earnings.

Veterinary pharmaceuticals firm Dechra jumped 36 percent after confirming it is in talks with private equity group EQT for a possible offer in a 4.63 billion pound ($5.80 billion) all-cash deal.

Struggling fashion brand Superdry slumped 18 percent on equity dilution worries after announcing a potential equity raise of up to 20 percent backed by founder and CEO Julian Dunkerton.

YouGov rallied 2 percent after the online market research company appointed Steve Hatch as its next chief executive.

Dutch navigation and digital mapping firm TomTom NV climbed 7 percent after returning to profit in the first quarter.

Hermes rose 1.3 percent in Paris after the Birkin bag maker reported a better-than-expected 23 percent rise in first-quarter sales.