12:13 PM EST, 01/10/2025 (MT Newswires) -- The European stock markets closed lower in Friday trading as The Stoxx Europe was down 0.83%, Germany's DAX fell 0.47%, the FTSE in London dropped 0.86%, France's CAC lost 0.79%, and the Swiss Market Index shed 1.13%.

House prices rose 2.6% in the euro area and 3.8% in the European Union in Q3 compared with a year earlier, according to Eurostat, the statistical office of the EU. Compared with the previous quarter, house prices increased 1.4% in both the euro area and in the EU. In Q2 annual house prices rose 1.4% and 3.0% in the euro area and EU, respectively from a year earlier.

In Italy, the seasonally adjusted index for retail trade declined 0.4% in value and 0.6% in volume compared with the previous month, according to the Italian National Institute of Statistics. On an annual basis, retail trade increased 1.1%, while volume dipped 0.2%.

And in corporate news, Wayfair said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing Friday that it is exiting the German market immediately, a move it said is expected to affect approximately 730 employees and result in restructuring charges of $102 million to $111 million.

"The German market has proven challenging due to factors such as the weak macroeconomic conditions for our category in Germany, the lower maturity of our offering, our current brand awareness, and our limited scale," Chief Executive Niraj Shah said in an email to employees.

Automotive stocks were tracking higher in Friday trading on the DAX, led by Mercedez Benz Group, which rose nearly 4%, followed by Volkswagen and BMW, which were up 1.2% and 1.1% respectively.