European stocks firm after a 7-day selloff

European stocks rose slightly today, Friday, as investors snapped up shares of luxury goods companies and technology companies, which fell sharply after a wide range of concerns, including the possibility of continued high US interest rates and a slowdown in the European economy, negatively affected morale this week.

The European STOXX 600 index rose 0.3% after recording losses for seven consecutive days on Thursday, the longest series of declines since February 2018.

The shares of French luxury goods company LVMH rose 0.8% after falling earlier this week due to fears of faltering growth in the Chinese economy.

While trading on Friday was characterized by relative stability, the STOXX 600 index is still on its way to recording weekly losses amounting to about 0.7%, with investors remaining concerned about the possibility of Europe sliding into a recession and US interest rates remaining high.

Saipem shares rose 1.9% after the Italian energy services group won new marine contracts worth 850 million euros.