European stocks rose on Friday, heading for small weekly gains, as investors focused on corporate earnings to assess the impact of US tariffs on businesses.
The STOXX 600 index climbed 0.3% to 548.84 points, set for its second weekly gain. Other major indexes, including Germany’s DAX, France’s CAC 40, and Britain’s FTSE 100, also saw modest increases.
Swedish defense company Saab jumped 12.7%, leading the STOXX 600, after reporting better-than-expected second-quarter earnings and raising its sales outlook.
Danish wind turbine maker Vestas gained 8.8% after J.P. Morgan upgraded its rating to “overweight” from “neutral.”
On the downside, GSK dropped over 6% after a U.S. FDA panel advised against approving its blood cancer drug Blenrep.
Swedish appliance maker Electrolux fell 14.6% following weak second-quarter results in Europe. Meanwhile, India’s Reliance Industries announced its retail unit had acquired Kelvinator from Electrolux.
On the FX front, the dollar index, which tracks the US dollar against six major currencies, rose to 98.57 by 0534 GMT. It’s set for a 0.72% weekly gain, adding to last week’s 0.91% increase.
On Thursday, the index hit 98.951, its highest since June 23, after US data showed stronger-than-expected retail sales in June and a drop in unemployment claims to a three-month low.
The euro rose 0.16% to 1.1617, recovering from Thursday’s three-week low of 1.1556, but is still down 0.65% for the week.
The British pound stayed flat at 1.3418, heading for a 0.53% weekly loss.
Bitcoin increased 0.82% on the day, trading around 120,460.
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