Investing.com – Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.07% on Wednesday, nearing an 18-month high as European stock markets drifted upward after mining stocks gained on upbeat imports and exports data from China.
During European afternoon trade, the EURO STOXX 50 was also up 0.22% and Germany's DAX climbed 0.17%.
France’s CAC 40 was up 0.29% after official data showed a better-than-expected monthly increase in French industrial production.
Miners were among the top performers, with BHP Billiton Ltd., the world’s largest mining company, rising 0.7% and Rio Tinto, the third-largest, gaining 1.65%.
Earlier in the day, official data showed that while Germany's CPI rose unexpectedly in February – by 0.4% compared with 0.2% in January – the country's trade surplus shrunk in January to EUR 8.7 billion from EUR 16.7 billion in December, defying forecasts.
Also Wednesday, a government report showed that British manufacturing output fell in January at its sharpest monthly rate since last August.
U.S. futures, meanwhile, pointed to a flat open: Dow Jones Industrial Average futures indicated a rise of 0.01%, S&P 500 Index futures pointed to a drop of 0.01% and Nasdaq 100 Index futures indicated a rise of 0.03%.
On Tuesday, the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 8 points, or 0.4%, ending at a fresh 18-month high.