European markets close lower after week of key data

Europe's Stoxx 600 index ran out of steam on Friday, ending the session 0.2% lower after it bucked the global trend to post gains throughout the rest of the week.

The U.K.'s FTSE 100 closed 0.1% lower at 8,004.36 points, after it closed above the 8,000 level for the first time on Thursday. The blue-chip index has strengthened on factors that included bumper energy profits and inflation coming down faster than expected.

France's CAC 40 was down 0.25%, and Germany's DAX was lower by 0.3%.

— Jenni Reid

U.S. stocks slipped on Friday as stubbornly high inflation and a rebound in rates continue to weigh on investor sentiment.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 119 points, or 0.35%. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite dipped by 0.54% and 0.59%, respectively. Yields on the 10-year and 2-year U.S. Treasury bonds hit levels not seen since November, weighing on equities.

— Carmen Reinicke

Air France-KLM said on Friday its 2023 bookings were almost back to pre-pandemic levels as it reported a better-than expected fourth-quarter operating profit with global travel demand seeing a rebound.

"Early 2022 was a bit difficult with Omicron and the issues in Ukraine, but we had a fantastic summer, especially across the Atlantic," Air France-KLM CEO Benjamin Smith told CNBC's Charlotte Reed.

He added that the premium leisure market had "exploded" and was filling business class, first class and premium economy cabins, bridging the gap left by a lag in the return of business travel.

Air France-KLM shares were up 6.5% at 3:30 p.m. London time.

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Ola Kallenius, CEO of Mercedes, discusses the company's strong earnings reported for 2022, despite the challenges of the global energy crisis and supply chain shortages.

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Britain's FTSE 100 index closed above 8,000 points for the first time on Thursday, with one analyst suggesting the reason behind demand for U.K. stocks is that "boring is the new sexy."

Despite anticipated recessions, U.K. and European economies have thus far managed to slightly exceed expectations and stave off a downturn.

The U.K. has also benefited somewhat from a return to economic stability after the market turmoil seen last year in the wake of former Prime Minister Liz Truss' ill-fated economic plan.

Meanwhile, mild weather in northern Europe and high levels of natural gas storage have seen the region manage to avert the energy shortages fearer for this winter.

Bumper profits in sectors with heavy weighting in the FTSE 100, such as energy, commodities and financials, have also helped propel the index upwards, along with a weak pound which helps overseas revenues collected in dollars.

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— Elliot Smith

Katie Murray, CFO of NatWest Group, says one of the things she looks out for "more than anything" is the unemployment rate.

Germany's producer prices rose more than expected in January, but the rate of increase was lower for the fourth month in a row, according to Reuters.

The data indicates inflation in Europe's largest economy, which currently sits at 8.7%, might be starting to tail off.

Producer prices for industrial products were up 17.8% from January 2022, according to the Federal Statistical Office. That's above analyst forecasts of 16.4%.

— Hannah Ward-Glenton

German bank Allianz reported a profitable fourth quarter after facing big charges the previous year in a U.S. funds scandal.

The bank reported net profit attributable to shareholders of 2.007 billion euros ($2.13 billion) in the three months through December, compared with a 292 million euro loss the previous year. The profits fell just short of analyst expectations of 2.034 billion euros, according to Reuters.

"The key message is the very strong companies that have used Covid to prepare themselves for a much tougher world are going to be the winners here and there will be lots that won't," Allianz CEO Oliver Bäte told CNBC on "Squawk Box Europe" Friday.

Shares of Allianz were down 3% around 8.15 a.m. London time.

— Hannah Ward-Glenton

A lot of the market selloff might be in, but optimism is still running too high, according to JPMorgan Asset Management global market strategist Meera Pandit told CNBC on Thursday.

"This is probably the overheat before the retreat in the economy," Pandit said on CNBC's "Closing Bell" on Thursday.

Pandit said the market right now is rallying off of strong economic data, overshoot on jobs, the latest consumer price index report and producer price index data, retail sales and industrial production. The strategist warned that consumer spending might weaken in the next several months, noting that stimulus checks and saving rates are waning.

"We're either going to see slower growth and a slowdown and disinflation, or, if growth is resilient, that means that inflation might have a little bit more room to run and therefore the Fed has to hike," Pandit said. "Either way, that's a little bit pessimistic for risk assets."

Pandit said the firm is seeing an environment of downward revisions in the U.S., noting that valuations of U.S. stocks are comparatively expensive to international stocks, which she said are trading at a 30% discount.

– Pia Singh

Stocks are mixed on a weekly basis following Thursday's action.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average is the laggard of the three, posting a 0.51% loss for the week. The 30-stock index is on track for its third consecutive week of losses, a first since its three-week losing streak ended in September.

The Nasdaq Composite is the outperformer, with a 1.18% gain. The tech-heavy index is on track for its sixth positive week in seven.

Finally, the S&P 500 is flat for the week.

-Darla Mercado, Chris Hayes

Investor interest in the semiconductor sector has rebounded in recent months with the iShares Semiconductor ETF up nearly 50% from its October lows.

2023 will be a "recovery year" for semiconductors, according to Morgan Stanley, and the bank has raised its price target on one "high quality" chip stock.

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— Zavier Ong

Standard Chartered expects China's economy to expand by 5.8% this year, CEO Bill Winters said in an interview with CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe."

"We're expecting China to grow 5.8% this year, obviously coming back from quite a difficult Covid period," Winters told CNBC's Geoff Cutmore, adding that "Hong Kong is back to life."

"The recession outlook does look a bit tough in the west, [but] the markets where we do the bulk of our business Asia, Africa and the Middle East, are looking pretty good," he said.

China's economy grew by 3% in 2022, according to data released in January.

— Jihye Lee, Hannah Ward-Glenton

Shares of Hong Kong-listed China Renaissance plunged by more than 20% Friday after the investment bank and fund manager said it was unable to reach founder and controlling shareholder Bao Fan.

China Renaissance said its business was operating normally.

Chinese financial news outlet Caixin pointed out that in September, an executive who was then chair of a China Renaissance subsidiary was called in by regulators for a probe over corporate governance violations.

— Evelyn Cheng

Most major bourses are expected to open lower Friday. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 is expected to lose 9 points to dip just below 8,000 at 7,999, while France's CAC 40 will have dropped from it's all-time intraday high Thursday to 7,341. Germany's DAX is seen to lose 79 points to 15,458, while Italy's MIB is expected to buck the trend and gain 124 points to hit 27,763.

— Hannah Ward-Glenton