Europe close: Stocks rise, notch fifth week of gains

(Sharecast News) - European stocks pushed higher on Friday, registering their fifth consecutive week of gains, with decent gains in the luxury sector providing a boost after Richemont beat market forecasts. The Stoxx 600 benchmark rose 0.4% to 548.43, with solid gains registered across all major bourses across the continent.

Since settling at a year-to-date low of 469.89 on 9 April, the Stoxx 600 has surged 16.7% and now stands at a closing level not seen since 26 March.

Helping this week's gained was last weekend's agreement between the US and China to lower tariffs for 90 days as the two powerhouses continue trade negotiations.

"This week, investors welcomed the easing of US-China trade tensions, which significantly reduced fears of a global recession," said Patrick Munnelly, partner of market strategy at Tickmill Group.

"This optimism was further supported by mild economic data and generally strong corporate earnings, despite some lingering caution in the market."

Friday's main economic datapoint was the eurozone trade balance for March, which reached a record-high level as American buyers frontloaded imports from the single-currency region in anticipation of April's introduction of tariffs.

The eurozone's trade surplus widened to €36.8bn, up from €24.8bn in February and the €22.8bn surplus recorded in March 2024, according to Eurostat. This was well ahead of the consensus estimate of €17.5bn, as exports to the US soared 59.5% to €71.4bn.

Market movers

Shares in high-end jewellery, watch, fashion giant Richemont jumped 7% after the Swiss firm beat consensus forecasts with a solid increase in full-year sales, driven by strong jewellery sales in the fourth quarter.

Others in the sector, such as Pandora, Burberry, Hermes and Kering also rose.

London-listed healthcare property business Assura rose after Primary Health Properties said it has made a third takeover offer for the company, valuing it at £1.68bn, trumping the £1.61bn offer from investment firms KKR and Stonepeak Partners that Assura accepted last month.

In other M&A news, healthcare software firm Craneware surged 8% as it confirmed that private equity firm Bain Capital is assessing a possible takeover offer for the group.