Investing.com - European stock markets traded higher Friday, as investors digested more corporate newsflow, the European Central Bank’s monetary policy decision ahead of the key U.S. jobs report.
At 04:00 ET (08:00 GMT), the DAX index in Germany traded 0.3% higher, the FTSE 100 in the U.K. climbed 0.4%, and the CAC 40 in France rose 0.4%.
The earnings season continues in Europe, with Adidas (ETR:ADSGN) stock climbing over 7% after the German sportswear giant's first-quarter numbers came in better than expected, boosting hopes the German sportswear giant is turning its fortunes around.
IAG (LON:ICAG) stock rose 4% after the British Airways owner raised its 2023 profit forecast after posting a surprise first-quarter profit on the back of strong ticket sales for summer and a winter season that beat expectations.
Air France KLM (EPA:AIRF) also reported better-than-expected first-quarter revenue and robust cash flow, but its stock slumped 3.6% after the airline decided against providing a full-year profit forecast.
CaixaBank (BME:CABK) stock rose 1.8% after the Spanish lender reported a hefty rise in net profit in the first quarter from a year ago, benefiting from a strong increase in lending income and a solid performance of its insurance business.
InterContinental Hotels Group (LON:IHG) stock fell 2.7% after the hotel operator announced CEO Keith Barr would step down from his role next month, overshadowing first-quarter results buoyed by a recovery in Greater China.
Sentiment had been buoyed by strong results from Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) after the Wall Street close Thursday, as the largest U.S. company by market value benefited from better-than-expected iPhone sales and notable inroads in India and other newer markets.
Investors are still digesting the implications of the European Central Bank slowing the pace of its policy tightening on Thursday, delivering a quarter percentage point increase.
While ECB President Christine Lagarde indicated that the central bank is not done with rate hikes yet, the bank also noted that previous increases were being "transmitted forcefully" into financing and monetary conditions.
Evidence of deteriorating economic conditions came with the release of German factory orders, which slumped 10.7% on the month in March, a drop from the revised 4.5% growth the prior month.
However, the major economic release Friday comes across the pond, with the U.S. monthly jobs report. This is expected to show that nonfarm payrolls rose 180,000 in April, a cooling from the 236,000 jobs created the prior month.
Oil prices rose Friday, but remained on course for a third straight weekly loss as concerns slowing growth, likely exacerbated by the turmoil in the U.S. banking system, will hit crude demand.
By 04:00 ET, U.S. crude futures traded 1.4% higher at $69.55 a barrel, while the Brent contract climbed 1.5% to $73.58.
For the week, Brent was set to close down over 7%, while WTI was set to close 9% lower.
Additionally, gold futures edged 0.4% lower to $2,048.35/oz, while EUR/USD traded 0.1% higher at 1.1025.