LONDON: European stock markets traded mixed on Friday, with the mining sector hit by concern about Chinese demand but Frankfurt holding ground near record territory despite disappointing data.
Frankfurt's DAX 30 edged up 0.04 percent to 9,943.27 points, coming closer to the unbroken 10,000 barrier despite German retail sales unexpectedly falling.
London's FTSE 100 index of top companies dropped 0.39 percent to 6,844.51 points, penalised by mining shares, and the CAC 40 in Paris shed 0.24 percent to 4,519.57 points. Madrid rose 0.60 percent and Milan added 0.55 percent.
The euro rose, coming off the lowest level since mid-February, as the dollar was hit by mixed US indicators but the euro still remains weighed down by expectations of a cut to eurozone interest rates next week by the European Central Bank (ECB).
"European markets spent most of the day mildly into the red after German retail sales contracted more than the previous month against expectations of an expansion," said analyst Jasper Lawler at CMC Markets UK.
German retailers' sales dropped by 0.9 percent compared with the level in March, when they had risen a revised 0.1 percent, the federal statistics office Destatis said, issuing initial figures.
China weighs on miners:
In London, mining companies topped the FTSE fallers board on mounting worries about weaker commodities demand from Asian powerhouse China.
Anglo American shares tumbled 5.7 percent to 1,457 pence, Rio Tinto shed 4.1 percent to 3,057 pence and Fresnillo dropped 3.5 percent to 806.00 pence.
BHP Billiton was down 3.7 percent at 1,868 pence, Randgold dropped 3.0 percent to 4,357 pence and Antofagasta lost 2.0 percent to 788.50 pence. "Some worrying news from China sent miners lower," said analyst Chris Beauchamp at traders IG.
"Government figures indicated manufacturing growth was weakening, contradicting recent signs of improvement in the economy and providing an excuse for some selling in raw materials."
In Paris, shares in BNP Paribas bank slumped 2.4 percent to 51.37 euros on a report that US justice authorities may fine it more than $10 billion on charges it violated sanctions against Iran, Sudan and Cuba.
Trading generally was downbeat as dealers awaited next week's crucial ECB interest rate decision. The Frankfurt-based central bank has already signalled that it was comfortable with easing monetary conditions, hinting at a possible interest rate cut when it meets next Thursday.
In foreign exchange deals on Friday, the euro stood at $1.3642, up from $1.3601 late in New York on Thursday, when it had hit its lowest level since mid-February at 1.3586.
The European single currency was flat against the British pound at 81.36 pence. The British pound increased to $1.6766 from $1.6716 on Thursday.
The price of gold eased to $1,250.50 an ounce from $1,255 Thursday on the London Bullion Market, having fallen as low as 1.244.36 during midday trading its lowest level since the beginning of February
UK outlook brightens:
The London stock market was not boosted by Britain's brightening economic outlook. Consumer confidence continued to improve in May, reaching the highest level for more than nine years, data showed from research firm GfK.
In another boost, business lobby group the British Chambers of Commerce raised its economic growth forecast for this year to 3.1 percent from 2.8 percent, and its forecast for 2015 to 2.7 percent from 2.5 percent.
Added to the mix, the Confederation of British Industry the nation's top employers' organisation said its suvey-based measure of economic growth hit the highest level in May since at least 2003.
In Asia, stock markets mostly closed lower on Friday, with Tokyo hit by a stronger yen and data that showed that Japanese household spending tumbling after a sales tax hike.
Tokyo fell 0.34 percent, Seoul slipped 0.86 and Sydney lost 0.49 percent, while Shanghai closed flat but Hong Kong was up 0.31 percent.
US stocks traded mixed following reports showing lower consumer spending and weak results for leading retailers. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 0.10 percent to 16,681.37 points in midday trading.
The broad-based S&P 500, which notched a new record Thursday, pushed 0.06 percent higher to 1,921.15 points, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index declined 0.06 percent to 4,245.22.
The Commerce Department reported that consumer spending, the largest driver of the US economy, fell by $9.1 billion last month, or 0.1 percent, following the $120.2 billion rise the previous month.
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