Investing.com - European stocks pushed lower on Wednesday, as sentiment remained under pressure after the release of disappointing euro zone data and following the results of a highly watched Italian bond auction.
During European afternoon trade, the EURO STOXX 50 dropped 0.62%, France’s CAC 40 retreated 0.53%, while Germany’s DAX 30 slipped 0.14%.
Italy saw the yield on three-year bonds rise to the highest level since December at the first auction of the country’s debt since a one-notch downgrade by Fitch’s ratings agency last week in the wake of inconclusive elections.
Italy’s Treasury sold EUR3.32 billion worth of three-year government bonds at an average yield of 2.48%, up from 2.30% at a similar auction last month.
Earlier Wednesday, Eurostat said industrial production in the euro zone fell 0.4% in January from December, more than expectations for a 0.1% decline. The weaker-than-expected data reinforced concerns over the economic outlook for the region.
Financial stocks remained broadly lower, as shares in French lenders BNP Paribas and Societe Generale dropped 0.93% and 1.31%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank plunged 1.84% and 8.08% respectively.
Peripheral lenders added to losses, with Spanish banks BBVA and Banco Santander retreating 0.39% and 1.02%, while Italy's Unicredit and Intesa Sanpaolo plummeted 1.66% and 2.38%.
Elsewhere, Inditex dove 3.43% after the company said net income rose 12% to EUR705 million in the three months through January, below analysts' estimates.
In London, FTSE 100 declined 1.05%, weighed by losses in financial stocks.
U.K. lenders tracked their European counterparts lower, as shares in Lloyds Banking dropped 0.68% and Barclays tumbled 1.31%, while HSBC Holdings and the Royal Bank of Scotland plunged 1.40% and 1.68%.
Mining stocks also remained on the downside, as BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto plummeted 1.89% and 1.92%, while Eurasian Natural Resources declined 2.62%.
In addition, copper producers Xstrata and Kazakhmys extended earlier losses, sliding 1.41% and 4.26% respectively.
Meanwhile, Direct Line Insurance Group plunged 2.66% after the Royal Bank of Scotland announced plans to sell a GBP530 million stake in the U.K. home and motor insurer.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a lower open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.21% fall, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.21% decline, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.20% loss.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release government data on retail sales, as well as official data on import prices, business inventories and crude oil stockpiles.
During European afternoon trade, the EURO STOXX 50 dropped 0.62%, France’s CAC 40 retreated 0.53%, while Germany’s DAX 30 slipped 0.14%.
Italy saw the yield on three-year bonds rise to the highest level since December at the first auction of the country’s debt since a one-notch downgrade by Fitch’s ratings agency last week in the wake of inconclusive elections.
Italy’s Treasury sold EUR3.32 billion worth of three-year government bonds at an average yield of 2.48%, up from 2.30% at a similar auction last month.
Earlier Wednesday, Eurostat said industrial production in the euro zone fell 0.4% in January from December, more than expectations for a 0.1% decline. The weaker-than-expected data reinforced concerns over the economic outlook for the region.
Financial stocks remained broadly lower, as shares in French lenders BNP Paribas and Societe Generale dropped 0.93% and 1.31%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank plunged 1.84% and 8.08% respectively.
Peripheral lenders added to losses, with Spanish banks BBVA and Banco Santander retreating 0.39% and 1.02%, while Italy's Unicredit and Intesa Sanpaolo plummeted 1.66% and 2.38%.
Elsewhere, Inditex dove 3.43% after the company said net income rose 12% to EUR705 million in the three months through January, below analysts' estimates.
In London, FTSE 100 declined 1.05%, weighed by losses in financial stocks.
U.K. lenders tracked their European counterparts lower, as shares in Lloyds Banking dropped 0.68% and Barclays tumbled 1.31%, while HSBC Holdings and the Royal Bank of Scotland plunged 1.40% and 1.68%.
Mining stocks also remained on the downside, as BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto plummeted 1.89% and 1.92%, while Eurasian Natural Resources declined 2.62%.
In addition, copper producers Xstrata and Kazakhmys extended earlier losses, sliding 1.41% and 4.26% respectively.
Meanwhile, Direct Line Insurance Group plunged 2.66% after the Royal Bank of Scotland announced plans to sell a GBP530 million stake in the U.K. home and motor insurer.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a lower open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.21% fall, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.21% decline, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.20% loss.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release government data on retail sales, as well as official data on import prices, business inventories and crude oil stockpiles.