LONDON (AFP) - European stock markets mostly rose in early dealing, buoyed by a strong overnight rally by Wall Street.
The London FTSE 100 index edged up 0.06 percent to 4,779.60 points, the Frankfurt DAX rose 0.19 percent to 4,138.48 points, while the Paris CAC fell 0.10 percent to 3,829.97.
The DJ Euro Stoxx index of leading eurozone shares inched up 0.03 percent to 2,904.82 points.
The euro stood at 1.2926 dollars.
US stocks rebounded on Thursday, winning support from a sharp drop in crude oil prices and positive broker comments regarding the technology sector, dealers said.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.85 percent to 10,473.53 points and the tech-heavy Nasdaq leapt 1.32 percent to 2,061.39 at the closing bell.
The broad-market Standard and Poor's 500 index climbed 0.94 percent to 1,173.88 points.
In Asia, Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei-225 index closed 1.60 percent higher at 11,019.98 points on Friday as investors focused on strong consumption figures in what was otherwise much weaker-than-expected third-quarter growth data, dealers said.
Gross domestic product grew 0.1 percent from the second quarter to give an annualized rate of 0.3 percent, well short of forecasts for 0.5 percent and 2.1 percent.
However, there was continued strength in consumer spending -- up 0.9 percent after a second quarter gain of 0.8 percent.
Hong Kong's key Hang Seng Index meanwhile closed 1.17 percent higher at 13,784.46 points.
In London, British satellite broadcaster BSkyB led the blue-chip risers, jumping 7.52 percent to 572 pence, after announcing strong subscriber growth in the run-up to the key Christmas trading period.
The number of direct-to-home subscribers grew by 62,000 in the first quarter to 7.2 million, beating analysts' consensus forecast for a rise of between 40,000 and 50,000.
11/12/2004 - 11:31 GMT - AFP