European stocks end on mixed note as investors weigh peace prospects

European markets closed mixed on Friday, struggling to find support past mid-afternoon. The mood remained cautious with investors assessing the prospects of a US-Iran peace deal after the two nations reportedly agreed in principle to extend the ceasefire by sixty days.

The agreement would purportedly facilitate the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and enable fresh negotiations over Iran's nuclear program, although President Donald Trump has yet to sign off on the deal.

Investors also digested a slew of regional economic data.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed up 0.14%. Germany's DAX ended 0.05% up, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 and France's CAC 40 settled lower by 0.16% and 0.07%, respectively.

Among other markets in Europe, Austria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Greece, Ireland, Poland, Spain and Sweden ended higher.

Belgium, Finland, Iceland, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Russia and Türkiye closed weak.

In the UK market, Endeavour Mining climbed 4.2%, AutoTrader Group moved up 3.4% and Airtel Africa gained nearly 2.5%, while Convatec Group, DCC, Rolls-Royce Holdings, Diploma and Natwest Group ended up by 1.5%-2%.

SSE, Diageo, Imperial Brands, British American Tobacco, Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, Sainsbury (J), Intercontinental Hotels Group and National Grid lost 2%-3.1%.

In the German market, Scout24 climbed 3.7%. SAP, Zalando and Heidelberg Materials gained 2%-2.5%.

Gea Group, Infineon, Brenntag, E.ON, Commerzbank and Merck also ended notably higher.