In Frankfurt, electric utilities companies RWE and E.ON boosted the DAX, rising 3.3% and 2.8%, followed by industrial gases company Linde, which climbed 2.5%. The FTSE lost 0.05%, the DAX gained 0.06%, and the CAC-40 rose 0.08%. "Within this month's retail sales we are seeing strong price increases across all store types compared with a year ago, reflecting wider inflationary pressures," said Kate Davies, an ONS senior statistician.