BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - The European markets struggled in early trade Thursday. Investor sentiment took a hit in the morning due to continued concerns over the situation in Syria and some weak economic data.
However, the markets turned higher around midday, after comments from U.S. President Trump eased concerns about an attack on Syria.
'Never said when an attack on Syria would take place. Could be very soon or not so soon at all!' Trump said in a post on Twitter.
The minutes from the recent monetary policy meeting of the European Central Bank showed that policy makers cautioned that rising trade protectionism and the recent appreciation of the single currency poses downside risks to the euro area growth outlook.
There was widespread concern among members that the risks arising from trade protectionism, which could be expected to have an adverse impact on activity for all countries involved, had increased, according to the minutes from the monetary policy meeting held on January 24-25.
The pan-European Stoxx Europe 600 index advanced 0.68 percent. The Euro Stoxx 50 index of eurozone bluechip stocks increased 0.71 percent, while the Stoxx Europe 50 index, which includes some major U.K. companies, added 0.54 percent.
The DAX of Germany climbed 0.98 percent and the CAC 40 of France rose 0.59 percent. The FTSE 100 of the U.K. gained 0.02 percent and the SMI of Switzerland finished higher by 0.76 percent.
In Frankfurt, GEA Group tumbled 8.02 percent. The system provider for food processing industry expects its Q1 EBITDA to be approximately 65 million euros, lower than previous year's 96 million euros.
Volkswagen rallied 1.46 percent on a Nikkei report that it is discussing a comprehensive tie-up with Japanese truck manufacturer Hino Motors in the commercial vehicle business.
In Paris, grocery retailer Carrefour Group sank 3.40 percent after reporting weak first-quarter sales.
Airbus Group rose 0.57 percent. The aerospace and defense major said it anticipates adjusted EBIT to grow about 20 percent in 2018.
In London, Shire advanced 2.67 percent amid reports that Takeda Pharmaceutical Co is moving closer to making a bid for the company.
Rail and bus operator FirstGroup surged 8.35 percent after rejecting a takeover offer from U.S. private equity firm Apollo Management.
Similarly, gambling software development company Playtech rallied 5.70 percent after it agreed to buy Italy's SNAITech SpA for 846 million euros.
Insurer and travel agent Saga advanced 5.73 percent after it reported a rise in annual underlying pretax profit despite challenging trading conditions.
Eurozone industrial production decreased for the third straight month in February, Eurostat reported Thursday. Industrial output fell 0.8 percent month-on-month in February, following a 0.6 percent drop in January. This was the third consecutive drop and came in contrast to the expected growth of 0.1 percent.
France's consumer price inflation accelerated more than initially estimated in March, latest figures from the statistical office Insee showed Thursday. Inflation accelerated to 1.6 percent in March from 1.2 percent in February. The preliminary estimate for March was 1.5 percent.
First time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits decreased in the week ended April 7th, according to a report released by the Labor Department on Thursday. The report said initial jobless claims fell to 233,000, a decrease of 9,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 242,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to drop to 230,000.
A report released by the Labor Department on Thursday showed U.S. import prices came in unchanged in March, while export prices increased by more than expected.
The Labor Department said import prices recorded no change in March after climbing by 0.3 percent in February. Economists had expected import prices to rise by 0.2 percent.
Meanwhile, the report said export prices increased by 0.3 percent in March after rising by 0.2 percent in the previous month. Export prices had been expected to rise by 0.2 percent.
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