EUROPE MARKETS: European Stocks Eye Best Week Since April

By Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- European stock markets headed for the strongest weekly gain since April on Friday, as the U.S. Federal Reserve's decision to taper its bond buying continued to spur optimism about the U.S. economy.

The Stoxx Europe 600 index rose 0.2% to 320.02, on track for a 3.3% weekly gain.

On Thursday, the benchmark saw its strongest rally since early September after the Fed late Wednesday decided to slow its monthly asset purchases, showing confidence in the underlying strength of the U.S. economy.

In Europe on Friday, consumer-confidence data from both the U.K. and Germany were in focus. In Germany, GfK's forward-looking consumer-sentiment indicator rose to 7.6 points in January from 7.4 points in December, to hit its highest level since August 2007.

The picture was less bright in the U.K., however, where the December reading fell to -13 from -12, marking a third straight month of a declines in consumer mood. The data follow retail figures released on Thursday, which showed shoppers spent less that expected in November.

Meanwhile, Standard & Poor's cut its long-term credit rating on the European Union to AA+ from AAA, citing concerns about contentious budget talks as reason for the move.

Among notable movers in Europe on Friday, SKF AB slid 5.4% after the Swedish ball-bearing maker said it will take a provision of 3 billion ($456 million) Swedish kronor related to a European Commission competition probe.

Shares of Vestas Wind Systems AS (VWDRY) climbed 2.1% after the wind-turbine maker received a 220 MW order in the U.S.

For the country-specific indexes, Germany's DAX 30 index rose 0.3% to 9,366.37, on track for the highest closing level in almost three weeks.

France's CAC 40 index rose 0.1% to 4,179.16 and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 index added 0.2% to 6,597.03.

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