European shares rise at the end of a turbulent week

European shares rose on Friday but headed for sharp weekly losses after a series of interest rate increases from major central banks fueled fears of a sharp economic slowdown.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 index rose 0.8 percent in volatile trading, but it is still heading for a weekly decline of 4 percent, in what may be its worst since early May.

Global stock markets are heading for their biggest weekly decline since the pandemic-caused market crash in March 2020, as they were affected by mounting fears of recession after interest rate hikes in the United States and Britain, which were followed by a sudden move in Switzerland to curb inflation.

Final euro zone inflation data for May will be released later on Friday.

The Stoxx 600 index has fallen by about 17 percent so far this year, amid concerns due to the deteriorating outlook for the economy, the damage to corporate profits from high prices and strict tightening measures by central banks.

Oil and gas, technology and retail were among the hardest hit European sectors this week.

Among individual stocks, Britain’s largest retailer Tesco fell 0.7 percent after it said it was seeing early signs of changing customer behavior due to rising inflationary pressures.

Spain’s Bank of Santander rose 0.5 percent after appointing Hector Gracie as its new chief executive, replacing long-serving Jose Antonio Alvarez.

London-listed trading and mining company Glencore rose 3.4 percent after it forecast adjusted semi-annual operating profit for the trading unit would exceed $3.2 billion, the upper end of its long-term annual forecast range.