This was CNBC's live blog covering European markets.

European stock markets traded lower on Friday, as global investors digested this week's tariff announcements from the Trump administration and weighed fresh economic data out of the United States.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed 0.77% lower, its third straight negative close. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 closed just below the flatline, while France's CAC 40 and the German Dax both lost around 1%.

Investors were reacting to the U.S. core personal consumption expenditures price index — the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation measure — which rose more than expected on Friday, according to an update released Friday. It put the core annual inflation rate at a hotter-than-expected 2.8%.

European shares deepened their losses following the data release, while U.S. stocks tumbled in morning deals on Wall Street.

U.S. President Donald Trump's new tariffs on foreign automakers are also still weighing on sentiment. On Wednesday, the president announced 25% duties on all cars "not made in the United States," with the levies set to go into effect from April 2.

He later threatened to impose "far larger" tariffs on the European Union and Canada if they worked together to combat duties from the U.S.

Back in Europe, inflation data from Spain and France came in lower than expected. French inflation came in at 0.9% in March, steady from February but below the 1.1% forecast by Reuters. Spain's annual inflation figure, meanwhile, dropped to 2.2% in March, compared with 2.9% in February.

In corporate news, shares of French video game publisher Ubisoft oscillated between strong gains and losses after Chinese tech giant Tencent announced it would take a $1.25 billion stake in a new subsidiary focusing on Ubisoft's gaming brands Assassin's Creed, Far Cry and Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six. The stock eventually closed 1.8% lower.

Asia-Pacific markets mostly fell on Friday as tariff threats kept investors on edge.

— CNBC's Jeff Cox contributed to this report.

Europe stocks close lower

European stock markets closed lower Friday, with the Stoxx 600 provisionally losing 0.79% to keep the regional index firmly on course for its first monthly loss of the year.

The Stoxx index of travel stocks led losses, down 2.8% amid jitters that slowing U.S. economic growth could dent consumer demand. Mining and growth-sensitive technology stocks both fell around 2%.

— Jenni Reid

Trump says he has 'extremely productive call' with new Canadian Prime Minister

President Donald Trump said Friday morning that he had a positive conversation with new Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.

"It was an extremely productive call, we agree on many things, and will be meeting immediately after Canada's upcoming Election to work on elements of Politics, Business, and all other factors, that will end up being great for both the United States of America and Canada," Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.

Trump has shared hopes of making Canada a U.S. state and referred to Carney's predecessor as "governor."

— Alex Harring

Markets looking for signs that ‘U.S. exceptionalism story’ is coming to an end, analyst says

Elsa Lignos, global head of FX strategy at RBC Capital Markets, discusses the performance of the dollar and how U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is impacting the economy and markets.

French cognac producers rise on Chinese probe delay

Shares of French drinks producers rose on Friday afternoon, after France's foreign minister said a Chinese probe into anti-dumping measures would continue for longer than planned.

"Following this visit, I received confirmation that the investigation has been postponed by three months, which rules out the scenario of a sudden application of definitive law to this sector," Jean-Noel Barrot told reporters during a visit to Shanghai on Friday, according to Reuters news agency.

Late last year, China began imposing anti-dumping measures on brandy products imported from the EU, collecting security deposits from companies worth up to 39% of their European brandy imports' value. It came after Beijing launched an anti-dumping investigation into brandy imported from the bloc.

Remy Cointreau, which owns cognac brands Rémy Martin and LOUIS XIII, was 4.4% higher by 2 p.m. London time, while Pernod Ricard, owner of Martell and Augier, had gained 2.8%.

— Chloe Taylor

Tariff uncertainty could stunt global growth: Oxford Economics

In a new report released Friday, economists at Oxford Economics said ongoing uncertainty around U.S. trade policy risks "spilling over and depressing consumer sentiment and financial markets."

On April 2, Trump's new 25% tariffs on all cars built outside of the U.S. will come into effect. The U.S. President has dubbed the date "Liberation Day" — but according to Oxford Economics Lead Economist Daniel Harenberg, it "could amplify the economic damages substantially."

Prolonged tariff uncertainty could have long-term ramifications, the economists warned. A severe impact on financial markets and consumer sentiment could shave up to 2.4% of global GDP in 2028, they argued.

— Chloe Taylor

French inflation holds steady; Spanish inflation falls

French inflation remained stable in March while Spanish inflation fell, backing bets for further European Central Bank rate cuts.

France's harmonized inflation rate, adjusted in comparison with other euro zone countries, rose to 0.9% in March, the same as February, according to data from statistics agency Insee. The figure came in below expectations of 1.1% according to a Reuters forecast.

Meanwhile, service prices increased 2.3% compared with 2.2% in February. However, energy prices were 6.2% lower, compared with 5.8% the month before.

Spain's harmonized inflation rate dropped to 2.2% in March, compared with 2.9% in February, according to data from the National Statistics Institute (INE). Non-harmonized inflation declined to 2.3% in March from 3% in February. INE pinned the figures on a decline in electricity prices largely, as well as lower fuel and lubricant prices to a lesser extent.

The ECB has cut rates six times over the past nine months as euro zone headline inflation remains below the 3% mark. The central bank is next due to meet in April.

— Sawdah Bhaimiya

UK retail sales better than expected in January

U.K. retail sales volumes increased by 1% month-on-month in January, the Office for National Statistics said Friday, defying the forecast of a Reuters poll of economists for a 0.4% decline.

It follows a 1.4% monthly uptick in January.

The February rise was driven by non-food store sales, while supermarkets saw a decline after a strong January.

The ONS released several data sets on Friday, confirming its previous reading of 0.1% economic growth for the U.K. economy in the fourth quarter 2024.

Consumers' real incomes were meanwhile shown to have risen by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Consumer spending ticked up by 0.1%, while business investment declined.

"Overall, while there are some tentative green shoots for February, the big picture of an economy that is struggling under the weight of higher business taxes, heightened global uncertainty and weak consumer sentiment remains," said Ruth Gregory, deputy chief U.K. economist at Capital Economics.

— Jenni Reid

Ubisoft shares soar

Ubisoft shares climbed over 10% on Friday after it announced that it's creating a new gaming subsidiary with Chinese technology giant Tencent investing 1.16 billion euros ($1.25 billion) into the unit.

The subsidiary will focus on Ubisoft's best-known games brands, including Assassin's Creed, Far Cry and Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six, according to the company.

It will "focus on building game ecosystems designed to become truly evergreen and multi-platform," Ubisoft said in a press release Thursday.

Read more here.

— Ryan Browne

Europe stocks open lower

European stocks opened broadly lower on Friday, with the regional Stoxx 600 0.23% lower shortly after the opening bell.

Germany's Dax shed 0.6%, while France's CAC 40 was almost 0.5% lower. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 was down 0.06%.

— Sawdah Bhaimiya

Gold prices hit another record high

Gold futures listed on the COMEX hit another record high to trade at $3,082.7 per ounce as investors continue to flock to the safe haven investment and central bank purchases remain strong.

Goldman Sachs raised its forecast for gold prices to $3,300 per ounce by the end of the year, up from $3,100, on the back of continued strength in purchases by central banks.

"While the uncertainty is large, we estimate that large Asian central bank buyers are likely to continue their rapid gold purchases for another 3-6 years," the investment bank's analysts said.

—Lee Ying Shan

Stocks end Thursday in the red

The S&P 500 shed 0.33% to end at 5,693.31, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.53% to close at 17,804.03. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 155.09 points, or 0.37%, to settle at 42,299.70.

— Pia Singh