Investing.com - European stock markets were sharply lower on Thursday, ahead of a French government debt auction as concerns over the euro zone’s financial crisis continued to dominate market sentiment.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 dropped 0.85%, France’s CAC 40 retreated 0.66%, while Germany’s DAX 30 fell 0.48%.
France was preparing to sell up to 8 billion euros in 10 to 30-year government debt one day after an auction of German 10-year bonds met with subdued investor demand.
A downbeat result was likely to fuel fears that France could lose its triple-A credit rating in the coming weeks.
Meanwhile, concerns over a default by Greece resurfaced after Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos warned his country may face economic collapse as soon as March.
Financial stocks were sharply lower as shares in Germany’s Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank plummeted 2.24% and 3.13%, while French lenders BNP Paribas and Societe Generale plunged 3.16% and 4.81% respectively.
Societe Generale announced late Wednesday that it was planning to cut 880 jobs in France and 700 jobs abroad.
Peripheral lenders also added to losses with Italian Unicredit and Intesa Sanpaolo sinking 5.45% and 3.35%, while Spain’s BBVA and Banco Santander slumped 2.02% and 2.76%.
Unicredit fell to its lowest level since March 2009 on Wednesday after saying it will sell new shares in a EUR7.5 billion offer to strengthen its capital position.
In London, FTSE 100 retreated 0.22%, as U.K. lenders tracked their European counterparts lower.
Shares in the Royal Bank of Scotland tumbled 1.49% and HSBC slumped 1.24%, while Lloyds Banking and Barclays slid 1.15% and 0.50 respectively.
On the upside, the energy sector was broadly higher with British Petroleum jumping 0.90% and Petrofac surging 1.95%, while Bg Group jumped 1.28%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a lower open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a fall of 0.42%, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.51% decline, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.41% drop.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release the ADP report on private sector employment as well as data on initial jobless claims and service sector activity.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 dropped 0.85%, France’s CAC 40 retreated 0.66%, while Germany’s DAX 30 fell 0.48%.
France was preparing to sell up to 8 billion euros in 10 to 30-year government debt one day after an auction of German 10-year bonds met with subdued investor demand.
A downbeat result was likely to fuel fears that France could lose its triple-A credit rating in the coming weeks.
Meanwhile, concerns over a default by Greece resurfaced after Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos warned his country may face economic collapse as soon as March.
Financial stocks were sharply lower as shares in Germany’s Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank plummeted 2.24% and 3.13%, while French lenders BNP Paribas and Societe Generale plunged 3.16% and 4.81% respectively.
Societe Generale announced late Wednesday that it was planning to cut 880 jobs in France and 700 jobs abroad.
Peripheral lenders also added to losses with Italian Unicredit and Intesa Sanpaolo sinking 5.45% and 3.35%, while Spain’s BBVA and Banco Santander slumped 2.02% and 2.76%.
Unicredit fell to its lowest level since March 2009 on Wednesday after saying it will sell new shares in a EUR7.5 billion offer to strengthen its capital position.
In London, FTSE 100 retreated 0.22%, as U.K. lenders tracked their European counterparts lower.
Shares in the Royal Bank of Scotland tumbled 1.49% and HSBC slumped 1.24%, while Lloyds Banking and Barclays slid 1.15% and 0.50 respectively.
On the upside, the energy sector was broadly higher with British Petroleum jumping 0.90% and Petrofac surging 1.95%, while Bg Group jumped 1.28%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a lower open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a fall of 0.42%, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.51% decline, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.41% drop.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release the ADP report on private sector employment as well as data on initial jobless claims and service sector activity.