European stock indices closed higher across the board on Friday, and the gains capped a positive trading week for all five major benchmarks, standing in contrast to the selling in the broader U.S. indices, where technology shares struggled.

The UK's FTSE 100 led the weekly advance with a gain of 3.13%. Germany's DAX and France's CAC 40 followed with weekly gains near 2%, while Italy's FTSE MIB lagged but still finished the week modestly higher.

European stocks close higher across the board

Friday's closing levels:

• Germany's DAX: +239.99 points, or +0.95%, at 25,622.62
• France's CAC 40: +21.98 points, or +0.28%, at 7,956.69
• UK's FTSE 100: +41.57 points, or +0.38%, at 10,881.91
• Spain's Ibex 35: +148.60 points, or +0.77%, at 19,326.31
• Italy's FTSE MIB: +459.61 points, or +0.93%, at 49,857.17

Germany and Italy led the day's advance. For Italy, the strong finish helped rescue an otherwise weaker week.

Weekly performance:

• Germany's DAX: +2.13%
• France's CAC 40: +1.97%
• UK's FTSE 100: +3.13%
• Spain's Ibex 35: +1.54n- Italy's FTSE MIB: +0.22%

U.S. technology shares remain under pressure

U.S. stocks presented a different picture as European trading wound down. The Dow was essentially unchanged, while losses deepened as the focus shifted toward technology and growth stocks. The U.S. figures below are snapshots captured with the New York session still underway, and they underline a split between the price-weighted Dow — an index of 30 large U.S. blue-chip companies — and the technology-heavy Nasdaq gauges.

At the snapshot:

• Dow Industrial Average: down 1.02 points, essentially unchanged, at 52,182.21
• S&P 500: down 46.47 points, or 0.60%, at 7,697.59
• Nasdaq Composite: down 363.14 points, or 1.36%, at 26,349.88
• Nasdaq 100: down 486.97 points, or 1.63%, at 29,448.63
• Russell 2000: down 29.32 points, or 1.06%, at 2,737.95

Weekly performance through the snapshot highlighted the divergence:

• Dow Industrial Average: +1.02%
• S&P 500: -1.44%
• Nasdaq Composite: -3.70%
• Nasdaq 100: -4.63%

The Dow has held up, the broader market has struggled, and technology shares have struggled even more, with the more concentrated Nasdaq 100 taking the biggest hit. The Nasdaq 100 tracks the largest non-financial companies listed on the Nasdaq exchange, a roster dominated by technology names, which makes it a widely watched proxy for the sector. With the final session of the week still running in New York, the closing prints will complete the picture of the week's transatlantic divergence.

European yields move higher

European equities advanced despite higher benchmark 10-year yields, with France leading the increase:

• Germany: 3.433%, up 2.4 basis points
• France: 4.816%, up 3.6 basis points
• UK: 5.383%, up 0.9 basis point
• Spain: 4.044%, up 1.5 basis points
• Italy: 4.502%, up 0.9 basis point

In the U.S., the Treasury curve is steepening — the gap between short- and long-term borrowing costs widening — with the 2-year yield slightly lower and longer yields moving higher:

• 2-year: 4.7465%, down 0.45 basis point
• 5-year: 4.9113%, up 1.43 basis points
• 10-year: 5.1103%, up 2.33 basis points
• 30-year: 5.4441%, up 1.61 basis points

The U.S. 10-year yield above 5.10% keeps the interest-rate backdrop in focus as technology shares come under pressure. Long-dated yields draw particular scrutiny from equity investors because they raise the discount rate applied to earnings expected far in the future — a sensitivity to which growth and technology valuations are considered especially exposed.

Dollar mostly lower; precious metals little changed

The dollar was mostly lower, with the New Zealand dollar leading the gains, followed by the Australian dollar and the British pound:

• EURUSD: 1.1223, up 0.04%
• GBPUSD: 1.3321, up 0.36%
• AUDUSD: 0.6945, up 0.38%
• NZDUSD: 0.5648, up 0.52%
• USDCHF: 0.8242, down 0.30%
• USDCAD: 1.4159, down 0.17%
• USDJPY: 158.06, 0.05%, a modest exception to the weaker-dollar tone

Gold and silver were little changed, while copper and bitcoin were higher:

• Spot gold: near $4,169.74, down 0.02%
• Silver: near $57.37, down 0.01%
• Copper futures: up 0.43%, near $6.585
• Bitcoin: near $81,485, up 0.52%

In review, Europe finished the week with gains across its major stock markets. In the U.S., the Dow held up, but sellers remained in control of the Nasdaq indices as the final session of the week continued. A shift in sentiment is punishing AI and chip stocks in the U.S., with the flow of funds heading back into the more stable Dow and European companies.