Investing.com - European stocks were steady to lower on Thursday, as the previous session's downbeat German data continued to weigh and as investors eyed the minutes of the European Central Bank's latest policy meeting due later in the day.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 fell 0.14%, France’s CAC 40 dipped 0.01%, while Germany’s DAX 30 eased 0.08%.
European equities weakened after data released on Wednesday showing that German industrial production fell at the fastest rate in a year in August, adding to concerns that a slowdown in global growth is spreading to the euro area’s largest economy.
German industrial output fell 1.2% from a month earlier, missing forecasts for a 0.2% increase.
Market participants were awaiting the minutes of the ECB's most recent policy meeting, to be released later in the day, for further indications on the central bank's next policy decisions.
Financial stocks were broadly lower, as French lenders BNP Paribas (PARIS:BNPP) and Societe Generale (PARIS:SOGN) tumbled 1.37% and 1.73%, while Germany's Commerzbank (XETRA:CBKG) and Deutsche Bank (XETRA:DBKGn) plummeted 2% and 2.65%.
Deutsche Bank was in the spotlight following reports the bank is bracing for a loss before taxes of €6 billion.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy's Unicredit (MILAN:CRDI) fell 0.17%, while Spanish banks BBVA (MADRID:BBVA) and Banco Santander (MADRID:SAN) slid 0.30% and 0.61% respectively.
Elsewhere, Volkswagen (XETRA:VOWG) saw shares plunge 2.31% after the head if its U.S. division Michael Horn pledged Wednesday to cooperate with a congressional investigation into the German automaker's emissions scandal.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 declined 0.40%, weighed by losses in the mining sector and as investors remained cautious ahead of the Bank of England's upcoming rate decision.
Shares in Antofagasta (LONDON:ANTO) tumbled 1.73% and Rio Tinto (LONDON:RIO) lost 1.96%, while rivals Anglo American (LONDON:AAL) and Glencore (LONDON:GLEN) plummeted 2.41% and 2.48% respectively.
Financial stocks were also broadly lower, as Lloyds Banking (LONDON:LLOY) slid 0.48% and the Royal Bank of Scotland (LONDON:RBS) dropped 0.88%, while HSBC Holdings (LONDON:HSBA) declined 1.02% and Barclays (LONDON:BARC) tumbled 1.27%.
Meanwhile, Carnival (LONDON:CCL) was one of the top performers on the index, with shares rallying 1.22%, after the company was named "America's Most Trusted Cruise Line" by Reader's Digest Magazine.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a lower open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.70% loss, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.72% drop, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.73% decline.