European stocks on Friday advanced to close at their highest level this week after data showed US employers added the most workers in four months.
Building on an earlier report that signaled a stronger eurozone economy, the STOXX Europe 600 Index rose 0.6 percent to 364.07 in a broad-based rally, after falling from 366.04 a week earlier.
Only the basic resources sector lost ground, with mining stocks dropping along with metal prices following lower-than-expected China macroeconomic data.
The Euro STOXX 50 Index added 0.6 percent, moving further away from a key support level representing its 50-day moving average.
US employers added 227,000 workers last month, well above the median forecast of 180,000 in a Bloomberg survey of economists, and following a 157,000 increase in December last year.
However, the jobless rate rose to 4.8 percent and average hourly earnings grew 2.5 percent from January last year, the weakest since August last year.
The eurozone economy started the year on a solid footing, with rising orders bolstering job creation, according to IHS Markit Ltd.
A composite purchasing managers’ index remained at 54.4 last month — the highest since 2011.
European mining stocks bucked the trend, with the STOXX 600 Basic Resources index closing 2.7 percent lower after Chinese economic data missed estimates and the nation’s monetary policy was tightened.
The sector index has been falling toward a key support level representing the 50 percent retracement of the index’s slump from the peaks of 2011 to the lows of early last year.
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