UK Market Rises, Imperial Tobacco Up

(RTTNews) - The UK market is trading higher on Friday, as investors look for bargain-hunting after several sessions of losses.

In economic news, German inflation accelerated as estimated in June, while wholesale prices declined for the twelfth consecutive month, reports from Destatis showed.

Inflation, based on harmonized consumer prices, rose to 1 percent in June on a yearly basis, final data revealed. The rate came in line with flash estimate published on June 27 and follows a 0.6 percent rise in May.

The Bank of France reported that French current account deficit widened to 3.1 billion euros in May from 2.3 billion euros in April, with the goods trade deficit widening and services trade surplus declining.

The U.K. Office for National Statistics said U.K. construction output fell 1.1 percent month-over-month in May, belying expectations for a 0.9 percent increase. The annual growth of 3.5 percent also trailed expectations.

Meanwhile, Portugal's central bank reassured investors that the solvency of embattled bank Banco Espirito Santo is "solid" and that it had taken steps to avoid contagion from Grupo Espirito Santo.

The Euro Stoxx 50 index of eurozone bluechip stocks is adding 0.61 percent, while the Stoxx Europe 50 index, which includes some major U.K. companies, is gaining 0.32 percent.

The FTSE 100 index is currently up 0.24 percent.

Imperial Tobacco is climbing 3 percent. The company confirmed it is in discussions with Reynolds American Inc. and Lorillard, Inc. to evaluate a possible acquisition of certain assets and brands owned by them. Reynolds is said to be nearing a deal to acquire smaller rival Lorillard.

Coca-Cola HBC is gaining around 3 percent and ITV is adding 2.7 percent.

Miners are bucking the trend. Randgold Resources is falling 3.2 percent and Fresnillo is losing 2.7 percent.

Antofagasta, Rio Tinto and Anglo American are falling between 1.8 percent and 1.1 percent.

The Asian stocks fell broadly as worries over Portugal's biggest bank stoked concerns about the underlying health of Europe's banking system.

In the U.S., futures point to a higher open on Wall Street. Stocks fell modestly overnight, with rising bond yields, worries about Europe's banking system and mixed trade data out of China weighing on the markets. Solid jobless claims numbers helped to limit the downside to some extent. The Dow and the S&P 500 slid about 0.4 percent each, while the Nasdaq dropped half a percent.

Crude for August delivery is losing $0.19 to $102.74 per barrel, while gold is falling $1.7 to $1337.5 a troy ounce.