London’s FTSE 100 index of top companies ended up 0.20% at 6,816.37 points yesterday.

AFP/London

European stock markets broadly crept ahead yesterday but lost some ground in afternoon trading despite strong US jobs data on the eve of a eurozone interest rate decision.

Trading was marked also by several initial public offerings in Europe.

Wall Street opened on a steady note after breaking record highs on Tuesday and reacting calmly to strong US jobs data which pushed up the dollar.

Europe’s main stock markets closed mixed, with Frankfurt’s DAX 30 up 0.09% to 9,911.27 points.

London’s FTSE 100 index of top companies ended up 0.20% at 6,816.37 while the CAC 40 in Paris fell 0.37% to 4,444.72 points compared to Tuesday’s closing levels.

The euro fell to $1.3652 from $1.3677 late on Tuesday in New York, while the pound hit another near six-year high at $1.7177 on expectations of a British interest rate rise.

Asian markets also advanced yesterday, taking a strong lead from a record close on Wall Street which was buoyed by solid Chinese manufacturing data.

Seasonally adjusted US private sector jobs data showed the biggest increase of 281,000 since November 2012, far above the expected figure of 200,000.

That data came ahead of the government’s employment report tomorrow.

“Today is likely to be a day of holding back ahead of tomorrow’s key events, principally the US employment report together with the European Central Bank meeting,” said economist Simon Smith at broker FXPro.

US financial markets will be closed on Friday for Independence Day.

The European Central Bank will also announce the outcome of its monetary policy meeting on Thursday, but is expected to sit tight one month after launching anti-deflationary measures and negative deposit interest rates.

In company news, telecom shares slid in Paris after Orange said it had decided not to play a role in consolidating the French telecoms market, with the effect that it would not buy its French rival Bouygues Telecom.

The news sent shares in Orange—formerly known as France Telecom—down 3.52% to 11.38 euros.

Bouygues shares shed 1.96% to 29.75 euros. Stock in Iliad which owns Free fell by 3.45%, and Numericable shares were down 2.51%.

In Paris, an initial public offering for professional social media firm Viadeo flopped with the shares falling 16.96% to 14.20 euros. This followed weak starts for recent French launches of the Euronext stock market operator, and Worldline, the payments terminal activities of computer service consultancy Atos.

Analysts said this reflected a glut of such issues and reluctance of investors to risk over-paying.

In Paris, shares in biology company Metabolic Explorer (METEX) leapt 42.41% to 3.66 euros after it signed an agreement with South Korean firm SK Chemicals.

US shares had climbed overnight in response to news out of China suggested a growth slowdown may have bottomed out.

Traders were also boosted by surprisingly strong figures for US auto sales.

New York’s Dow Jones Industrial Average index climbed 0.77% and the S&P 500 added 0.67%—both ending at all-time highs. The Nasdaq jumped 1.14%.

Wall Street was catching its breath on Wednesday, with the Dow up 0.08 and the Nasdaq climbing 0.04% by mid-morning. The S&P had also gained 0.08%.