Investing.com - European stock markets were mixed during European afternoon trade on Tuesday, as investors looked ahead to a meeting of euro zone finance ministers to discuss a delayed bailout payment for Greece.
Sentiment was hit earlier after Moody’s stripped France of its prized AAA credit rating late Monday.
During European afternoon trade, the EURO STOXX 50 shed 0.3%, France’s CAC 40 declined 0.4%, while Germany’s DAX 30 added 0.1%.
The eurogroup of euro zone finance ministers was to hold talks in Brussels later in the day to discuss whether Greece can receive its next tranche of bailout funds.
Meanwhile, ratings agency Moody’s downgraded France’s AAA-rating by one notch to AA1 late Monday and kept a negative outlook on the rating, citing weakening growth prospects for the euro zone’s second-largest economy.
The downgrade followed a similar move by Standard & Poor’s several months ago, leaving Fitch Ratings as the only ratings firm to keep France at triple-A.
Shares in the financial sector remained lower, with France’s BNP Paribas and Societe Generale down 1.2% and 0.75% respectively, while Germany’s Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank fell 3.1% and 2.3% respectively.
Peripheral lenders also remained under pressure, with Italy’s Intesa Sanpaolo retreating 1.9% and Spain’s BBVA down 1.2%.
Swiss investment bank Credit Suisse lost 3.3% after saying it would reorganize its business to form a new wealth-management division.
Elsewhere, in London, the FTSE 100 slumped 0.15%, weighed down by losses in lenders. HSBC shares declined 1.45%, Royal Bank of Scotland dropped 2.1% and Barclays slumped 2.75%.
On the upside, commodity trading house Glencore rose 1.85% after shareholders approved the firm’s proposed all-share merger with copper miner Xstrata. Xstrata shares added 2% on the news.
Meanwhile, in the U.S., equity markets pointed to a lower open, as investors looked ahead to a number of key corporate earnings reports before the opening bell, as well as data on housing starts and building permits.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a loss of 0.4% at the open, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.25% decline, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.3% drop.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish official data on building permits and housing starts, while Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was to speak at an event in New York.
Sentiment was hit earlier after Moody’s stripped France of its prized AAA credit rating late Monday.
During European afternoon trade, the EURO STOXX 50 shed 0.3%, France’s CAC 40 declined 0.4%, while Germany’s DAX 30 added 0.1%.
The eurogroup of euro zone finance ministers was to hold talks in Brussels later in the day to discuss whether Greece can receive its next tranche of bailout funds.
Meanwhile, ratings agency Moody’s downgraded France’s AAA-rating by one notch to AA1 late Monday and kept a negative outlook on the rating, citing weakening growth prospects for the euro zone’s second-largest economy.
The downgrade followed a similar move by Standard & Poor’s several months ago, leaving Fitch Ratings as the only ratings firm to keep France at triple-A.
Shares in the financial sector remained lower, with France’s BNP Paribas and Societe Generale down 1.2% and 0.75% respectively, while Germany’s Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank fell 3.1% and 2.3% respectively.
Peripheral lenders also remained under pressure, with Italy’s Intesa Sanpaolo retreating 1.9% and Spain’s BBVA down 1.2%.
Swiss investment bank Credit Suisse lost 3.3% after saying it would reorganize its business to form a new wealth-management division.
Elsewhere, in London, the FTSE 100 slumped 0.15%, weighed down by losses in lenders. HSBC shares declined 1.45%, Royal Bank of Scotland dropped 2.1% and Barclays slumped 2.75%.
On the upside, commodity trading house Glencore rose 1.85% after shareholders approved the firm’s proposed all-share merger with copper miner Xstrata. Xstrata shares added 2% on the news.
Meanwhile, in the U.S., equity markets pointed to a lower open, as investors looked ahead to a number of key corporate earnings reports before the opening bell, as well as data on housing starts and building permits.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a loss of 0.4% at the open, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.25% decline, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.3% drop.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish official data on building permits and housing starts, while Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was to speak at an event in New York.