European Stocks End Strong Week On A Quiet Note

(RTTNews) - European stocks were mixed on Friday after strong gains earlier in the week, as data showing Germany's retail sales fell unexpectedly in April renewed fears about the region's economy.

French shares lagged amid weakness in the banking sector.

The Euro Stoxx 50 index of eurozone bluechip stocks was unchanged at 3244.64, near a multi-year high. The index was up 1.3 percent for the week.

The German DAX was also virtually unchanged, the UK's FTSE 100 lost 0.54 percent, the French CAC 40 eased 0.22 percent.

In Paris, BNP Paribas lost 2.9 percent, amid reports that the U.S. is seeking $10 billion to settle some investigations.

Meanwhile, rival Societe Generale SA slipped 2.1 percent after Les Echos reported that the bank's Russian unit posted a decline in first-quarter profit.

Credit Agricole fell nearly 4 percent.

Singulus Technologies said today that its outlook is still optimistic. The stock was up 3 percent.

Fenner lost 10.5 percent, as it sees full year pre-tax profit sharply below market expectations.

Hargreaves Services, which issued a trading update, lost 3.5 percent.

Bucking the trend, Smith & Nephew rose 1.6 percent, amid talks of an acquisition offer from US-based Stryker.

Germany's retail sales fell unexpectedly in April after rising for three consecutive months, Destatis said. Retail sales turnover declined by a real 0.9 percent from March, when it was up 0.1 percent. Sales were expected to rise 0.2 percent.