European shares fell on Friday to end their second straight week in the red after US jobs data failed to meet the market hype and fighting in Libya pushed oil prices higher. Top fallers included world No 2 retailer Carrefour, down 4.4 percent on concern over its strategy after a board member resigned, and top global ad firm WPP pulling back 2.6 percent after a pre-results run-up.
The FTSEurofirst 300 index of leading European shares ended down 0.6 percent at 1,148.53 points to close the week down 1 percent. The index had traded up as high as 1,163.47 points earlier in the session. "Expectations had been slowly rising on the back of some stronger economic data through the course of the week, so the bar was set relatively high this time around," said Henk Potts, strategist at Barclays Wealth.
"Given the turmoil we've seen on the geopolitical stage, given the disappointment around the economic data, there was enough of a trigger for some investors to take some risk off the table going into the weekend," he added. The ongoing conflict in Libya and further sectarian tensions in the Gulf state of Bahrain fuelled US benchmark crude to a 2 1/2-year high around $104 a barrel, while European benchmark Brent crude also rose to around $116/bbl.
The VDAX-NEW volatility index, one of Europe's main barometers of investor anxiety, ended up 0.4 percent. Among blue chips, technicals suggest further upside potential over the next two months, said Philippe Delabarre, technical analyst at Trading Central, who has a first target at 3,078 points, followed by 3,520, and with a stop-loss at 2,890.
Supportive elements included a "bullish continuation pattern in symmetrical triangle", a recent bounce off a key declining trendline and the 50-day simple moving average. The Euro STOXX 50 ended the day down 0.7 percent at 2,949.18 points. Around Europe, UK's FTSE 100 index ended down 0.2 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 0.7 percent, and France's CAC 40 ended 1 percent lower.