Market Analysis

European shares climbed on Friday, poised to close the week on a positive note, buoyed by strong performances from tech giants in the United States. The STOXX 600 index opened the session with a 0.5% uptick, potentially marking a weekly gain of 1.2% after three consecutive weeks of losses.

The technology sector led the rally on the index, boosted by encouraging quarterly results from U.S. tech giants Microsoft and Alphabet. Meanwhile, Thyssenkrupp saw its shares soar by 8.8% after announcing plans to divest a 20% stake in its steel business to an energy holding controlled by Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky.

Amundi also saw a significant uptick of 7% following positive first-quarter inflows, attributed to successful joint ventures in Asia and sustained demand for risk-averse products, which contributed to the growth of assets under management.

However, Airbus disappointed with weaker-than-expected first-quarter operating profit and cashflow, as the company expanded its workforce in anticipation of increased demand. This led to a 2.6% decline in Airbus shares, dragging down France's benchmark index.

Paraphrasing text from "Reuters" all rights reserved by the original author.