European stocks rise as Russia-Ukraine conflict escalates By Investing.com

Investing.com — European equity markets opened higher on Friday, as investors kept an eye on the escalating conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

At 3:23 ET (8:23 GMT), Germany was up 0.6%, France was up 0.5%, and the UK gained 0.7%.

Russia escalates conflict with hypersonic missile strike on Dnipro

On Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin responded to the US and UK’s decision to allow Kyiv to target Russian territory with Western weapons by launching a hypersonic ballistic missile over the Ukrainian city of Dnipro.

The strike represents an escalation of nearly three years of unrest and follows recent indications that Russia has scaled back its nuclear arsenal.

German economic growth for Q3 was revised downward as exports fell

The German economy grew at a slower pace than expected in the third quarter, according to data released by the statistics office on Friday.

The country’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 0.1% compared to the previous quarter, a slight downward revision compared to the previous estimate of 0.2% growth.

Household spending rose 0.3% in the quarter, while government spending rose 0.4%. However, investment declined, with consumption of machinery and equipment down 0.2% and investment in construction down 0.3%.

Exports were also weak, with goods and services seeing a 1.9% drop from the second quarter. The statistics office said exports, in particular, fell sharply, falling by 2.4%.

Commodities, bitcoin rise on geopolitical tensions

Crude oil prices rose on Friday, buoyed by heightened tensions in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, overshadowing recent gains.

At 3:23 ET, it was up 0.8% at $74.81 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil was up 0.9% at $70.70 a barrel.