Investing.com - European stocks were mixedon Friday, as investors remained cautious amid the ongoing U.S. budget struggle and the government shutdown, while political turmoil in Italy persisted.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 edged up 0.07%, France’s CAC 40 added 0.12%, while Germany’s DAX 30 slipped 0.23%.
Markets were jittery as investors continued to weigh the implications of a protracted U.S. government shutdown.
Investors were also considering how the U.S. political deadlock will impact negotiations to raise the U.S. debt ceiling, which the U.S. Treasury Department has estimated will be reached by October 17.
Speaking overnight, International Monetary Fund head Christine Lagarde said the failure to raise the U.S. debt ceiling could hurt the global economy and warned U.S. growth could drop below 2% this year.
In Europe, Former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was to face another political test on Friday as the Italian Senate was preparing to vote on whether to expel him from politics for a tax fraud conviction he received in August.
Financial stocks were mixed, as French lenders BNP Paribas and Societe Generale gained 0.43% and 0.42%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank slipped 0.26%.
Among peripheral lenders, Spanish bank BBVA declined 0.32%, while Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo and Unicredit rallied 0.96% and 1.58% respectively.
Elsewhere, Finmeccanica climbed 0.48% as board members were set to meet later in the day to discuss the sale of part of the aerospace and defense company’s stake in power-plant division Ansaldo Energia.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 shed 0.20%, weighed by losses in energy and mining stocks.
Oilfield service company Petrofac was one of the worst performers, with shares down 3.04%, while BP eased 0.03%.
Mining giants Glencore Xstrata and Evraz added to losses, tumbling 0.94% and 1.69% respectively, while Rio Tinto and Polymetal plummeted 1.87% and 2.18%.
Meanwhile, financial stocks were mostly higher. Lloyds Banking added 0.15% and HSBC Holdings advanced 0.55%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland rose 0.30%. Barclays underperformed however, losing 1.04%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a moderately higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.08% gain, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.10% rise, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.13% increase.
Also Friday, official data showed that producer price inflation in Germany fell 0.1% in August, confounding expectations for a 0.1% rise, after a 0.1% slip the previous month.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 edged up 0.07%, France’s CAC 40 added 0.12%, while Germany’s DAX 30 slipped 0.23%.
Markets were jittery as investors continued to weigh the implications of a protracted U.S. government shutdown.
Investors were also considering how the U.S. political deadlock will impact negotiations to raise the U.S. debt ceiling, which the U.S. Treasury Department has estimated will be reached by October 17.
Speaking overnight, International Monetary Fund head Christine Lagarde said the failure to raise the U.S. debt ceiling could hurt the global economy and warned U.S. growth could drop below 2% this year.
In Europe, Former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was to face another political test on Friday as the Italian Senate was preparing to vote on whether to expel him from politics for a tax fraud conviction he received in August.
Financial stocks were mixed, as French lenders BNP Paribas and Societe Generale gained 0.43% and 0.42%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank slipped 0.26%.
Among peripheral lenders, Spanish bank BBVA declined 0.32%, while Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo and Unicredit rallied 0.96% and 1.58% respectively.
Elsewhere, Finmeccanica climbed 0.48% as board members were set to meet later in the day to discuss the sale of part of the aerospace and defense company’s stake in power-plant division Ansaldo Energia.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 shed 0.20%, weighed by losses in energy and mining stocks.
Oilfield service company Petrofac was one of the worst performers, with shares down 3.04%, while BP eased 0.03%.
Mining giants Glencore Xstrata and Evraz added to losses, tumbling 0.94% and 1.69% respectively, while Rio Tinto and Polymetal plummeted 1.87% and 2.18%.
Meanwhile, financial stocks were mostly higher. Lloyds Banking added 0.15% and HSBC Holdings advanced 0.55%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland rose 0.30%. Barclays underperformed however, losing 1.04%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a moderately higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.08% gain, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.10% rise, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.13% increase.
Also Friday, official data showed that producer price inflation in Germany fell 0.1% in August, confounding expectations for a 0.1% rise, after a 0.1% slip the previous month.