(RTTNews) - German stocks traded lower on Friday as investors digested mixed economic data and awaited the release of U.S. jobs report later in the day for additional clues on the Fed's monetary policy path.
Germany's exports and imports growth accelerated in April, while industrial production dropped at a slower pace in the month, according to separate set of figures from Destatis.
German exports grew at a faster pace of 1.6 percent on a monthly basis, following March's revised 1.1 percent increase. Shipments were forecast to grow 1.1 percent.
Imports growth advanced to 2.0 percent from 0.5 percent in March- exceeding economists' forecast of 0.6 percent.
Germany's industrial output edged down 0.1 percent on a monthly basis in April following a 0.4 percent drop in March.
Although the pace of decrease softened from March, this was in contrast to economists' forecast of 0.3 percent gain.
The benchmark DAX was down 78 points, or 0.4 percent, at 18,575 after rising 0.4 percent in the previous session.
In corporate news, Vonovia shares tumbled 3.2 percent after a rating downgrade by Morgan Stanley.
