Moderate US consumer price inflation boosted euro zone equities briefly and lifted demand for US and European debt today.
The dollar also weakened slightly after US figures showed a headline rise of 0.3 per cent in June, above market forecasts, while core CPI, which removes volatile energy and food costs, rose by a smaller-than-expected 0.1 per cent.
Stock futures indicated a firmer open on Wall Street.
The US data eased concerns that price figures could require aggressive rate rises by the Federal Reserve. Analysts said the data showed moderation of price pressures, which have been affected in recent months by strong oil prices.
The FTSE Eurotop 300 index of pan-European blue chips was rose by 0.56 per cent, ticking higher immediately after the US data. The narrower DJ Euro Stoxx 50 index rose by 0.58 per cent on the day, adding to earlier gains.
In the debt market, the interest-rate-sensitive two-year Schatz yield was down 2.2 basis points on the day at 2.614 per cent. European interest rate futures rose after the US data.