Europe open: China factory data lifts stocks
Stocks in Europe started the session higher at the end of the week with the latest economic data out of China somewhat surprisingly perhaps helping to lift the mood among investors.
As of 1000 GMT, the German Dax was rising 0.35% to 13,190.15, while the Cac-40 was ahead by 0.41% to 5,885.74.
Overnight, an official survey of factory sector conditions in the Asian giant showed that activity only softened a touch in January, despite the onset of the new coronavirus.
That helped to offset the impact from the World Health Organisation's decision overnight to declare a global health emergency and news that the death that the number of cases had jumped further, reaching 9,950, although analysts remained very wary, despite the lower mortality rate of the current outbreak.
"A somewhat unremarkable decline in the Chinese manufacturing PMI survey could provide a false sense of security, with much of the economic impact likely to be reflected in the next release," said IG's Josh Mahony.
"Chinese economic growth is certain to take a substantial hit, and with no end in sight to this crisis it does seem product for traders to remain defensive for the time being."
The latest batch of economic data out in the euro area was underwhelming, with the bloc's quarter-on-quarter rate of growth in gross domestic product slowing from 0.2% in the third quarter to 0.1% in the final stretch of the year (consensus: 0.2%).
Separately, Eurostat reported that while headline consumer prices picked up by a tenth of a percentage point to 1.4% year-on-year in January, at the core level CPI slowed by more than expected, from 1.3% to 1.1% (consensus: 1.2%).