EUROPE MARKETS: European Stocks Head For Seven-day Winning Streak

By Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Upbeat growth data from China and a strong prior-day session on Wall Street helped lift European stock markets on Friday, with the benchmark index on track for a seventh straight day in positive territory.

The Stoxx Europe 600 index climbed 0.4% to 317.21, flirting with the highest level in more than five years.

Shares of L'Oréal SA gained 2.4% after Shiseido Co. said it has entered exclusive talks to sell two of its Paris-based cosmetics businesses to the bigger French rival.

On a more downbeat note, shares of Anglo American PLC gave up 2.5% after the miner released a mixed production update for the third quarter with copper, diamond and nickel output up, but iron ore down.

OMV AG dropped 2.3% after the oil refiner said political unrest in North Africa took its toll on hydrocarbon-production levels in the third quarter.

For the broader European markets, investors were inspired by news from China, where data showed economic growth picked up 7.8% in the third quarter. The reading was higher than some analyst estimates, but in line with average expectations from a Reuters survey of economists.

However, more-recent statistics for September suggest a mild slowdown is underway, with growth for industrial production, retail sales and construction activity all slipping lower.

Investors also mirrored prior-day gains in the U.S., where the S&P 500 index (SPX) managed a record finish as Wall Street turned from the latest fiscal drama on Capitol Hill to corporate earnings.

U.S. stock futures pointed to a higher open on Friday.

In Europe, Germany's DAX 30 index added 0.3% to 8,834.60. France's CAC 40 index picked up 0.5% to 4,258.74, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 index rose 0.4% to 6,601.86.

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