Investing.com - European stocks were mostly lower on Monday, as markets were still digesting remarks by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen made on Friday.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 slid 0.38%, France’s CAC 40 fell 0.32%, while Germany’s DAX 30 dropped 0.63%.
At the Jackson Hole symposium on Friday, Fed Chair Janet Yellen said the case for U.S. interest rate hikes has “strengthened” in recent months due to improvements in the labor market and to expectations for solid economic growth.
However, she did not indicate when the Fed would act, saying that higher interest rates will depend on incoming economic data.
Speaking shortly afterwards, Fed Vice Chair Stanley Fischer said Yellen’s speech was “consistent” with expectations for possibly two more rate hikes this year, opening the door to a September hike.
Financial stocks were broadly higher, as French lenders BNP Paribas (PA:BNPP) and Societe Generale (PA:SOGN) rose 0.23% and 0.55%, while Germany’s Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) and Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn) advanced 0.22% and 1.33%.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy’s Intesa Sanpaolo (MI:ISP) and Unicredit (MI:CRDI) rallied 0.95% and 1.83% respectively. Spanish banks Banco Santander (MC:SAN) and BBVA (MC:BBVA) underperformed, with shares sliding 0.29% and 0.93%.
Elsewhere, Roche Holding AG (SIX:ROG) rose 0.29% after the Swiss pharmaceutical giant said it received emergency use authorization for its Zika virus test by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Alstom (PA:ALSO) added to gains, with shares surging 2.02% after the French engineering firm was awarded a $2 billion contract by Amtrak to supply new high-speed trains.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 gained 0.31%, boosted by sharp gains in the mining sector.
Shares in Antofagasta (LON:ANTO) jumped 2.75% and BHP Billiton (LON:BLT) rallied 3.15%, while rivals Glencore (LON:GLEN) and Rio Tinto (LON:RIO) surged 3.21% and 3.29% respectively.
Financial stocks were also broadly higher, as HSBC Holdings (LON:HSBA) climbed 0.81% and the Royal Bank of Scotland (LON:RBS) advanced 0.89%, while Barclays (LON:BARC) gained 1%. Lloyds Banking (LON:LLOY) underperformed however, with shares declining 0.62%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a steady to lower open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.07% loss, S&P 500 futures showed a 0.10% fall, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.12% slide.