Investing.com - European stocks were lower on Thursday, despite upbeat Chinese trade balance data, as investors remained cautious ahead of the European Central Bank's policy statement later in the day.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 fell 0.25%, France’s CAC 40 dropped 0.46%, while Germany’s DAX 30 eased 0.01%.
The ECB was widely expected to hold off cutting rates, but some market participants expected the bank to flag the possibility of rate cuts later in the year.
Sentiment found support earlier, after official data showed that China’s trade surplus widened unexpectedly in December, adding to signs of recovery in the world’s second largest economy.
Chinese exports rose 14.1% in December from a year earlier while imports increased by 6%.
Financial stocks were mixed, as shares in French lenders BNP Paribas and Societe Generale declined 1.71% and 0.84%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank advanced 0.14% and 1.82% respectively.
Peripheral lenders added to losses, with Italian banks Intesa Sanpaolo and Unicredit dropping 0.56% and 0.47%, while Spain's Banco Santander and BBVA slid 0.16% and 0.78%.
Elsewhere, Volkswagen climbed 0.48% after the carmaker said it will offer to buy out the rest of German truckmaker MAN SE’s shareholders to take full control of the company.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 dipped 0.01%, weighed by losses in mining stocks.
Mining giants Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton retreated 0.54% and 0.61%, while rival Evraz plummeted 1.45%.
Copper producers Xstrata and Kazakhmys were on the upside however, with shares adding 0.45% and 0.18%.
In the financial sector, stocks were mostly higher. Lloyds Banking edged up 0.26% and HSBC Holdings rose 0.30%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland climbed 0.76%. Barclays underperformed on the other hand, as shares dropped 0.79%.
Meanwhile, Marks & Spencer, the U.K.’s largest clothing retailer, dove 4.68% after it said same-store revenue at the general merchandise unit fell 3.8% in the 13 weeks ending December 29.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.13% rise, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.15% increase, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.14% gain.
Also Thursday, official data showed that French industrial production rose more-than-expected in November, ticking up 0.5% after a 0.6% decline the previous month.
Analysts had expected industrial production to rise 0.3% in November.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release the weekly government report on initial jobless claims.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 fell 0.25%, France’s CAC 40 dropped 0.46%, while Germany’s DAX 30 eased 0.01%.
The ECB was widely expected to hold off cutting rates, but some market participants expected the bank to flag the possibility of rate cuts later in the year.
Sentiment found support earlier, after official data showed that China’s trade surplus widened unexpectedly in December, adding to signs of recovery in the world’s second largest economy.
Chinese exports rose 14.1% in December from a year earlier while imports increased by 6%.
Financial stocks were mixed, as shares in French lenders BNP Paribas and Societe Generale declined 1.71% and 0.84%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank advanced 0.14% and 1.82% respectively.
Peripheral lenders added to losses, with Italian banks Intesa Sanpaolo and Unicredit dropping 0.56% and 0.47%, while Spain's Banco Santander and BBVA slid 0.16% and 0.78%.
Elsewhere, Volkswagen climbed 0.48% after the carmaker said it will offer to buy out the rest of German truckmaker MAN SE’s shareholders to take full control of the company.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 dipped 0.01%, weighed by losses in mining stocks.
Mining giants Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton retreated 0.54% and 0.61%, while rival Evraz plummeted 1.45%.
Copper producers Xstrata and Kazakhmys were on the upside however, with shares adding 0.45% and 0.18%.
In the financial sector, stocks were mostly higher. Lloyds Banking edged up 0.26% and HSBC Holdings rose 0.30%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland climbed 0.76%. Barclays underperformed on the other hand, as shares dropped 0.79%.
Meanwhile, Marks & Spencer, the U.K.’s largest clothing retailer, dove 4.68% after it said same-store revenue at the general merchandise unit fell 3.8% in the 13 weeks ending December 29.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.13% rise, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.15% increase, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.14% gain.
Also Thursday, official data showed that French industrial production rose more-than-expected in November, ticking up 0.5% after a 0.6% decline the previous month.
Analysts had expected industrial production to rise 0.3% in November.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release the weekly government report on initial jobless claims.