Investing.com - European stocks were lower on Friday, as investors began to focus on the European Central Bank's upcoming policy meeting next week, amid speculation over whether it will announced additional stimulus measures.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 slipped 0.26%, France’s CAC 40 declined 0.39%, while Germany’s DAX 30 fell 0.20%.
European equities found support after ECB President Mario Draghi signaled last week that the bank is ready to act quickly to boost inflation in the euro zone and can also change the level of its deposit rate to boost the impact of quantitative easing.
However investors remained cautious since news on Tuesday that Turkey shot down a Russian warplane on the Syrian border, sparking security concerns in the region.
Financial stocks were mixed, as French lenders BNP Paribas (PA:BNPP) and Societe Generale (PA:SOGN) gained 0.20% and 0.57%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn) and Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) eased up 0.02% and 0.01%.
Among peripheral lenders, Unicredit (MI:CRDI) dipped 0.06% and Intesa Sanpaolo (MI:ISP) rose 0.27% in Italy, while Spanish banks Banco Santander (MC:SAN) and BBVA (MC:BBVA) dropped 0.21% and 0.38% respectively.
Elsewhere, Volkswagen (DE:VOWG_p) shares tumbled 1.73% after South Korea ordered the recall of 125,522 of the company's cars after revealing that its own testing showed that the carmaker deliberately manipulated a diesel emissions device in vehicles with an older engine.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 slid 0.38%, weighed by sharp losses in mining stocks.
Shares in Rio Tinto (L:RIO) and Bhp Billiton (L:BLT) lost 1.85% and 2% respectively, while Fresnillo (L:FRES) plummeted 2.20% and Anglo American (L:AAL) plunged 4.61%.
Rio Tinto was in the spotlight earlier, following news the miner had won final approval to expand its Australian coal mine.
In the financial sector, stocks were steady to lower. Shares in Barclays (L:BARC) and the Royal Bank of Scotland (L:RBS) dipped 0.04% and 0.08% respectively, while HSBC Holdings (L:HSBA) retreated 0.78%. Lloyds Banking (L:LLOY) overperformed however, with shares rising 0.37%.
Meanwhile, Inmarsat PLC (L:ISA) shares climbed 0.55%, following news earlier in the week that the company signed a strategic maritime agreement with Ericsson (ST:ERICAs) that is intended to facilitate the sharing of cargo, logistics and vessel operational data to help streamline the entire maritime supply chain.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a steady to lower open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.18% fall, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.06% dip, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.01% downtick.