Investing.com – European stocks were lower on Wednesday, while U.S. stock futures were mixed amid fears over the rate of U.S. growth ahead of key U.S. economic data. Asian markets were also broadly lower.
During European afternoon trade, the EURO STOXX 50 fell 0.44%; France’s CAC 40 fell 0.34% while Germany's DAX shed 0.18%.
Shares in Standard Chartered, a U.K. lender that gets more than three quarters of its earnings from Asia, plummeted 6.3% after the Royal Bank of Scotland downgraded its recommendation on the shares to “hold” from “buy."
Elsewhere in the financial sector, shares in Allied Irish Bank, Ireland's second largest bank tumbled 8.2% after a first-half loss as bad debts rose while Bank of Ireland shares fell 5.9%.
Among retailers Marks & Spencer Group, the U.K.’s biggest clothing retailer, lost 3.4% while shares in retailers Next tumbled 7.4% after it said sales declined 0.80% in the first-quarter.
In London, the commodity heavy FTSE 100 tumbled 1.05% as shares in BP fell 1.26% after the oil giant said the Gulf of Mexico oil well had reached a so-called static condition, ahead of permanent measures to seal the leaking well.
The outlook for U.S. equity markets, meanwhile, was mixed ahead of earnings reports by Time Warner, AOL and PG&E Corp. due before Wall Streets open.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures indicated a decline of 0.08%, S&P 500 futures pointed to a fall of 0.03% and Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.08% gain.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release ADP non-farm payrolls as well as key data on service sector growth.
During European afternoon trade, the EURO STOXX 50 fell 0.44%; France’s CAC 40 fell 0.34% while Germany's DAX shed 0.18%.
Shares in Standard Chartered, a U.K. lender that gets more than three quarters of its earnings from Asia, plummeted 6.3% after the Royal Bank of Scotland downgraded its recommendation on the shares to “hold” from “buy."
Elsewhere in the financial sector, shares in Allied Irish Bank, Ireland's second largest bank tumbled 8.2% after a first-half loss as bad debts rose while Bank of Ireland shares fell 5.9%.
Among retailers Marks & Spencer Group, the U.K.’s biggest clothing retailer, lost 3.4% while shares in retailers Next tumbled 7.4% after it said sales declined 0.80% in the first-quarter.
In London, the commodity heavy FTSE 100 tumbled 1.05% as shares in BP fell 1.26% after the oil giant said the Gulf of Mexico oil well had reached a so-called static condition, ahead of permanent measures to seal the leaking well.
The outlook for U.S. equity markets, meanwhile, was mixed ahead of earnings reports by Time Warner, AOL and PG&E Corp. due before Wall Streets open.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures indicated a decline of 0.08%, S&P 500 futures pointed to a fall of 0.03% and Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.08% gain.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release ADP non-farm payrolls as well as key data on service sector growth.