Euro zone GDP beats, Greece emerges from recession

Investors breathed a sigh of relief on Friday, as the euro zone's economy grew more than expected in the third quarter and Germany narrowly avoided falling into recession.

Euro zone gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 0.2 percent on the previous quarter, according to data from the Eurostat, the European Union's statistics service, beating a Reuters forecast of a 0.1 percent expansion.

The 18-country bloc that uses the euro emerged from an almost two-year recession in the second quarter of 2013, but it's been an uneven journey for the region since then, with diminishing demand plaguing the region alongside geopolitical concerns with tensions in the eastern part of Ukraine. 

Read more: Good news from both France and Greece bolstered the euro zone's growth in the third quarter.