Investing.com - European stocks were higher on Monday, after upbeat Spanish manufacturing data although concerns over Greece's future in the euro zone persisted.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 rose 0.30%, France’s CAC 40 gained 0.38%, while Germany’s DAX 30 climbed 0.71%.
Research group Markit said that Spain's manufacturing purchasing managers' index rose to 54.7 this month from 53.8 in December, beating expectations for a rise to 54.0.
On Friday, concerns over the threat of deflation in the euro zone re-emerged after Eurostat said that the annual rate of inflation in the single currency bloc fell by 0.6% in January, after a 0.2% slip in December. Economists had expected an annual decline of 0.5%.
Markets were also jittery as Greece's new government said it will not cooperate with the International Monetary Fund and the European Union and will not seek an extension to its bailout program, underlining fears over a clash with its international creditors.
Financial stocks were broadly lower, as French lenders BNP Paribas (PARIS:BNPP) and Societe Generale (PARIS:SOGN) slid 0.55% and 0.56%, while Germany's Commerzbank (XETRA:CBKG) lost 1.54%.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy's Unicredit and Intesa Sanpaolo dropped 0.57% and 1.27% respectively, while Spanish banks BBVA and Banco Santander plummeted 1.36% and 1.64%.
Elsewhere, Holcim (SIX:HOLN) jumped 1.04% and Lafarge advanced 1.05% after the two companies agreed to sell €6.5 billion of assets to Irish building-materials company CRH to overcome antitrust demands and proceed with their planned merger.
In London, FTSE 100 gained 0.44%, led by CRH, whose shares surged 4.65% following the asset-purchase.
Oil companies added to gains, as BP (LONDON:BP) climbed 0.80% and Royal Dutch Shell B rallied 1.66%, while rival Tullow Oil (LONDON:TLW) soared 2.34%.
Both BP and BG Group, up 2.46%, earlier announced plans for a $21 billion cut in spending plans.
Financial stocks were also on the upside with Lloyds Banking (LONDON:LLOY) inching up 0.01% and the Royal Bank of Scotland (LONDON:RBS) gained 0.47%, while Barclays advanced 0.64%. HSBC Holdings (LONDON:HSBA) underperformed however, dropping 0.43%.
Meanwhile, mining stocks were mostly lower. Shares in Rio Tinto slipped 0.13%, while Randgold Resources and Fresnillo (LONDON:FRES) tumbled 1.14% and 1.50% respectively.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.31% increase, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.25% gain, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.27% rise.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to produce a report on personal income and spending. The Institute of Supply Management was also to release data on manufacturing activity.