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Tech Rally, Earnings Season Elevate European Bourses Midday

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European bourses tracked moderately higher midday Friday as traders joined the global tech rally and weighed a generally good earnings season.

Oil and tech stocks led gains on continental trading floors, while food shares lagged.

Euronext shares traded up 6.2% midday after the Paris-based stock exchange operator posted Q2 financial results that topped expectations.

Investors also eyed Wall Street futures flashing green, and sharply higher closes overnight on Asian exchanges, including a 17.9% uplift on Seoul's KOSPI index and an 8% rise on the Taiwan TWSE, in tech-sector rallies.

Front-month North Sea Brent crude-oil futures were up 1.2% at $90.13 a barrel.

In economic news, the Eurozone consumer price index (CPI) rose 2.9% on year in July, up from a 2.8% on-year incline in June, reported Eurostat.

The pan-continental Stoxx Europe 600 Index was up 0.6% mid-session.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Technology Index was up 1.6%, and the Stoxx 600 Banks Index gained 0.8%.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Oil and Gas Index rose 1.4%, while the Stoxx 600 Europe Food and Beverage Index declined 0.4%.

The REITE, a European REIT index, rose 0.4%.

On the national market indexes, Germany's DAX was up 0.6%, and the FTSE 100 in London gained 0.3%. The CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.8%, and Spain's IBEX 35 lifted 0.7%.

Yields on benchmark 10-year German bonds were higher at 3.20%.

The Euro Stoxx 50 volatility index was down 5% at 18.21, indicating below-average volatility for European stock markets in the next 30 days, a positive signal. A reading above 20 indicates choppier markets ahead, while below 20 suggests calmer exchanges.

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