(MENAFN- AFP) European equities were narrowly mixed on Wednesday in reaction to economic data out of the eurozone, traders said.Markets were looking ahead to the European Central Bank's monetary policy decision due Thursday and the week's US employment data.London's benchmark FTSE 100 index climbed 0.19 percent to stand at 6,461.30 points approaching midday in the British capital.Frankfurt's DAX 30 dropped 0.23 percent to 9,107.37 points and the CAC 40 in Paris inched up 0.08 percent to 4,120.72 compared with Tuesday's closing values.The European single currency gained against the dollar.Eurozone private sector business activity in January showed the best performance since June 2011, fresh evidence that a modest recovery is gaining traction, a key survey showed on Wednesday.Markit Economics said its Eurozone Composite Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) for January rose to 52.9 points from 52.1 in December, the seventh monthly rise in a row.Markit said the upturn was driven by the manufacturing sector while services remained subdued in comparison, at 51.6 points in January compared with 51 in December."Services PMIs in Spain, Italy and France were all better than expected, although the two latter remained below the key 50 level that separates growth from contraction," said Craig Erlam, analyst at Alpari traders."However, the drop in the German services PMI clearly weighed on the overall eurozone figure."Separate figures from the Eurostat statistics agency showed that eurozone retail sales fell 1.6 percent in December compared with November when they had risen 0.9 percent.In foreign exchange, the euro climbed to $1.3520 from $1.3515 late in New York on Tuesday. The single currency rose to 83.11 British pence from 82.77 pence. The price of gold increased to $1,257.30 an ounce from $1,250.25 an ounce Tuesday on the London Bullion Market.Asian markets finished mixed on Wednesday, with a rally on Wall Street giving Tokyo the impetus to claw back some of its losses in the previous session.However the dollar slipped against the yen as investors remain on edge about the global economy, following a series of disappointing economic data and the US Federal Reserve's recent decision to reduce its stimulus programme.Markets around the world were recently sent into a tailspin following worse than expected manufacturing activity data from China and the United States, suggesting softness in the global economy.But Wall Street's three main indices, which each saw losses of more than two percent at the start of the week, rebounded slightly Tuesday on bargain buying and solid corporate results, including from fast food giant Yum Foods and fashion retailer Michael Kors.Investors will be waiting to see how Google shares react to news on Wednesday that the European Commission has accepted proposals by the US giant to remedy complaints over its dominant position in the Internet search market, opening the way to a settlement.
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