European stock markets begin slightly higher on Friday as investors assess the release of the UK's GDP data.

Before the publication of an abundance of economic data in the region, kicked off already by quarterly U.K. growth statistics, European stock markets begin slightly higher on Friday.

Investors have been anxious for the majority of the week due to worries about the continuing financial crisis, the U.S. debt ceiling standoff, a slowdown in the global economy, and other factors.

As investors analyse a flood of economic data coming out of Europe, with British gross domestic product data serving as the major event, lacklustre trading is anticipated to continue on Friday.

The first quarter GDP for the United Kingdom revealed that growth remained sluggish throughout the first three months of the year, increasing by 0.1% on a quarterly basis and 0.2% annually, but declining by 0.3% in March.

In an effort to tackle the rising levels of inflation, the Bank of England increased interest rates by 25 basis points on Thursday, reaching their highest level since 2008. However, the Bank also praised the economy's resilience while upgrading its growth predictions.

Allianz reported a good increase in net earnings for the first quarter after being penalised by the financial services business for a U.S. funds controversy a year prior.

Despite reporting a deficit for the first quarter, Norwegian Air Shuttle predicted a robust summer travel season.

Additionally, Richemont and UBS are expected to announce earnings, and the Financial Times claimed that the Swiss banking behemoth has prioritised merging Credit Suisse's investment bank and speeding up cost-cutting.

A delayed rebound in China's fuel consumption and ongoing concerns that the U.S. economy is entering a recession have caused oil prices to fall on Friday, setting the stage for four straight weeks of falls.

However, there is some credence to the rumour that if oil prices continually hover around $70 per barrel, the United States may decide to replenish its severely depleted Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

(Investing.com, reuters.com)