European equity markets traded higher on Friday after Benjamin Netanyahu signaled that Israel is open to direct negotiations with Lebanon, while maintaining that military operations against Hezbollah across the country would continue.
On the economic front, data from Destatis showed that German consumer inflation accelerated to its highest level since January 2024, driven largely by rising energy costs following the Iran conflict.
Consumer prices increased 2.7% year on year in March, up from 1.9% in February, in line with preliminary figures released at the end of March. The reading marks the strongest inflation level since early 2024.
Harmonized inflation across the euro area framework also climbed to 2.8%, matching expectations and rising from 2.0% the previous month.
In the markets, the DAX gained 0.8%, the CAC 40 rose 0.7%, and the FTSE 100 advanced 0.3%.
Among individual stocks, Porsche (TG:PAH3) declined after reporting weaker first-quarter delivery figures.
Sodexo (EU:SW) also came under pressure following a sharp drop in first-half earnings and a downgrade to its full-year sales and profit outlook.
On the upside, Skanska (BIT:1SKAB) gained after announcing a contract to build a high-tech facility in the United States valued at approximately SEK 1.3 billion.
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