12:10 PM EDT, 09/26/2025 (MT Newswires) -- European stock markets closed higher in Friday trading as the Stoxx Europe 600 was up 0.75%, Germany's DAX gained 0.84%, the FTSE 100 rose 0.77%, France's CAC increased 0.97% and the Swiss Market Index added 0.45%.

Euro area consumers expected prices to rise 2.8% over the following 12 months in August, up from a 2.6% rise expected in July, according to a European Central Bank survey.

And in corporate news, Meta Platforms (META) said it will soon begin offering UK users the option to subscribe to Facebook and Instagram without ads, in response to regulatory guidance from the UK Information Commissioner's Office.

The subscription will cost 2.99 British pounds ($3.99) per month on the web or 3.99 pounds on iOS and Android for the first account, the company said. Additional accounts can be added in a user's Meta Accounts Center for 2 pounds per month on the web or 3 pounds on mobile platforms. Users who do not subscribe for the paid version will continue to access the platforms for free with ads.

Alphabet's (GOOG, GOOGL) Google is likely to be hit with a second fine in the coming months under the European Union's Digital Markets Act, Reuters reported Thursday, citing three people with direct knowledge of the matter.

In a blog post Thursday, Google said that the Digital Markets Act is causing "significant and unintended harm" to European users by requiring Google Search to show links to intermediary websites instead of direct ones to airline and hotel sites, raising prices for consumers.

Exxon Mobil's (XOM) Esso and Eni (E) are among six oil companies that were fined a combined 936.7 million euros ($1.09 billion) for allegedly establishing a fuel price "cartel," the Italian Competition Authority said, which imposed a fine of 336.2 million euros on Eni and 129.4 million euros on Esso, among others.

Eni said it disagrees with the authority's findings and that it will defend its case, while a spokesperson for Esso told MT Newswires in an emailed response that it "strongly disagrees with the ICA's findings and will explore all possible options to appeal." Shares of the Italian oil major gained 1.3% on the Milan Stock Exchange.

French oil and gas company TotalEnergies (TTE) and Cognite said they are expanding their partnership to scale the deployment of Cognite's industrial data and artificial intelligence platform across all TotalEnergies-operated upstream assets. TotalEnergies shares rose 1.6% in Paris.

Swiss drugmaker Novartis (NVS) said that US President Donald Trump's newly-announced 100% tariff on branded or patented pharmaceutical products will not impact it as it continues to advance its plan to ensure key medicines for US patients are manufactured locally. Novartis shares edged 0.4% higher on the SIX Swiss Exchange.