BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - German stocks held steady on Friday after data showed German industrial orders rose more than expected in October, in a good sign for the euro area's recovery.
The benchmark DAX was marginally higher at 13,254 after declining half a percent the previous day.
BioNtech shares fell 2.3 percent as Pfizer slashed the 2020 production target of its Covid-19 vaccine, citing challenges in supply chain.
Banks Commerzbank and Deutsche Bank were narrowly mixed, while automakers BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen were up between 0.4 percent and 0.8 percent.
German factory orders grew at a faster pace in October, data from Destatis revealed.
Factory orders grew 2.9 percent sequentially in October, faster than September's 1.1 percent rise. Orders were forecast to climb 1.5 percent.
Excluding major orders, new orders in manufacturing were 1.7 percent higher than in the previous month. Domestic and foreign orders increased 2.4 percent and 3.2 percent, respectively in October.
Year-on-year, factory orders advanced 1.8 percent, in contrast to a 1.1 percent decrease in September.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX