MW: Europe stocks erase losses after U.S. jobs data
By Sara Sjolin
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- European stock markets reversed in afternoon action on Friday, after the U.S. Labor Department said 146,000 jobs were added to the economy in November, far more than expected by analysts. The unemployment rate dropped to 7.7% from 7.9%, also better than what was predicted. The Stoxx Europe 600 index XX:SXXP +0.27% rose 0.4% to 279.84, after trading around 279.35 before the U.S. data. France's CAC 40 index FR:PX1 +0.30% rose 0.4% to 3,617.27, while Germany's DAX 30 index DX:DAX +0.13% added 0.1% to 7,544.62. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index UK:UKX +0.18% gained 0.3% to 5,918.20.