Investing.com - European stocks closed lower Monday despite the release of better-than-expected euro zone economic data, as investors remained cautious ahead of a German court ruling and the Federal Reserve’s monthly policy meeting later in the week.
European stocks closed lower on the session with the EURO STOXX 50 dropped 0.40%, France’s CAC 40 fell 0.37%, while Germany’s DAX 30 eased lower by 0.01%.
Market research group Sentix reported its index of investor confidence improved by 7.1 points to minus 23.2 in September from a reading of minus 30.3 in August. Analysts had expected the index to deteriorate by 0.4 points to minus 30.7 in September.
The improvement was largely due to optimism surrounding the European Central Bank’s bond purchasing plan, unveiled last week.
However traders remained nervous ahead of a highly anticipated German court ruling on the constitutionality of the European Stability Mechanism, scheduled on Wednesday.
Investors were also eyeing the outcome of the Fed’s policy meeting on Thursday, after disappointing employment data on Friday fueled fresh speculation that the U.S. central bank may announce a third round of quantitative easing to boost growth.
Financial stocks remained mixed, as shares in German and French banks pushed higher, while peripheral lenders were broadly lower.
Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank surged 3.13% and 2.87%, while France’s BNP Paribas and Societe Generale rose 1.91% and 0.33% respectively, erasing earlier losses.
Bloomberg reported earlier that Deutsche Bank co-CEOs Anshu Jain and Juergen Fitschen may be preparing the largest revamp at Europe’s biggest bank in eight years.
On the other hand, Spanish banks Banco Santander and BBVA declined 0.38% and 2%, while Italy’s Intesa Sanpaolo dropped 0.44%.
Meanwhile, Lufthansa jumped 2.34%, extending earlier gains, after the Unabhaengige Flugbegleiter Organisation union reportedly agreed to call off further strikes while engaging in mediation.
Lufthansa canceled more than half of its flights on September 6 after a third strike by its main cabin crew.
In London, the commodity heavy FTSE 100 dipped 0.03%.
Financial stocks turned broadly higher mixed. Shares in HSBC Holdings eased up 0.02% and Lloyds Banking climbed 0.70%, while Barclays advanced 1.33% and the Royal Bank of Scotland rallied 2.49%.
Copper producer Xstrata remained one of the session’s top gainers, with shares surging 2.51% after Glencore laid out its revised USD36 billion all-share bid for Xstrata, warning it would not improve the terms again as it outlined a fresh offer that made some concessions to shareholders.
Mining giants Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton also added to gains, with shares climbing 3.10% and 1.21%.
Elsewhere, Marks & Spencer surged 3.27%, after Reuters reported that bankers are evaluating debt packages to back a possible buyout of the company.
In the U.S., equity markets traded lower midsession with the Dow down 0.03%, the broad based S&P 500 off by 0.08% and the tech heavy Nasdaq off by 0.53%.
Also Monday, official data showed that industrial production in France rose unexpectedly in July, ticking up 0.2% after a flat reading the previous month.
Analysts had expected France’s industrial production to fall by 0.5% in July. Investors are awaiting the U.S. and Canadian trade balance numbers on Tuesday.
European stocks closed lower on the session with the EURO STOXX 50 dropped 0.40%, France’s CAC 40 fell 0.37%, while Germany’s DAX 30 eased lower by 0.01%.
Market research group Sentix reported its index of investor confidence improved by 7.1 points to minus 23.2 in September from a reading of minus 30.3 in August. Analysts had expected the index to deteriorate by 0.4 points to minus 30.7 in September.
The improvement was largely due to optimism surrounding the European Central Bank’s bond purchasing plan, unveiled last week.
However traders remained nervous ahead of a highly anticipated German court ruling on the constitutionality of the European Stability Mechanism, scheduled on Wednesday.
Investors were also eyeing the outcome of the Fed’s policy meeting on Thursday, after disappointing employment data on Friday fueled fresh speculation that the U.S. central bank may announce a third round of quantitative easing to boost growth.
Financial stocks remained mixed, as shares in German and French banks pushed higher, while peripheral lenders were broadly lower.
Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank surged 3.13% and 2.87%, while France’s BNP Paribas and Societe Generale rose 1.91% and 0.33% respectively, erasing earlier losses.
Bloomberg reported earlier that Deutsche Bank co-CEOs Anshu Jain and Juergen Fitschen may be preparing the largest revamp at Europe’s biggest bank in eight years.
On the other hand, Spanish banks Banco Santander and BBVA declined 0.38% and 2%, while Italy’s Intesa Sanpaolo dropped 0.44%.
Meanwhile, Lufthansa jumped 2.34%, extending earlier gains, after the Unabhaengige Flugbegleiter Organisation union reportedly agreed to call off further strikes while engaging in mediation.
Lufthansa canceled more than half of its flights on September 6 after a third strike by its main cabin crew.
In London, the commodity heavy FTSE 100 dipped 0.03%.
Financial stocks turned broadly higher mixed. Shares in HSBC Holdings eased up 0.02% and Lloyds Banking climbed 0.70%, while Barclays advanced 1.33% and the Royal Bank of Scotland rallied 2.49%.
Copper producer Xstrata remained one of the session’s top gainers, with shares surging 2.51% after Glencore laid out its revised USD36 billion all-share bid for Xstrata, warning it would not improve the terms again as it outlined a fresh offer that made some concessions to shareholders.
Mining giants Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton also added to gains, with shares climbing 3.10% and 1.21%.
Elsewhere, Marks & Spencer surged 3.27%, after Reuters reported that bankers are evaluating debt packages to back a possible buyout of the company.
In the U.S., equity markets traded lower midsession with the Dow down 0.03%, the broad based S&P 500 off by 0.08% and the tech heavy Nasdaq off by 0.53%.
Also Monday, official data showed that industrial production in France rose unexpectedly in July, ticking up 0.2% after a flat reading the previous month.
Analysts had expected France’s industrial production to fall by 0.5% in July. Investors are awaiting the U.S. and Canadian trade balance numbers on Tuesday.