Investing.com - European stocks opened lower on Friday, as markets paused after a strong rally was sparked in the previous session by the Federal Reserve's decision to raise interest.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 retreated 0.89%, France’s CAC 40 slid 0.65%, while Germany’s DAX 30 declined 0.67%.
At the conclusion of its policy meeting on Wednesday, the Fed raised interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point to between 0.25% and 0.50%. It was the first rate hike in the U.S. since 2006.
Commenting on the decision, Fed Chair Janet Yellen said that further rate hikes would be gradual and data dependent.
Financial stocks were broadly lower, as French lenders BNP Paribas (PA:BNPP) and Societe Generale (PA:SOGN) eased 0.08% and 0.09%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn) and Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) declined 0.45% and 1.56%.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo (MI:ISP) and Unicredit (MI:CRDI) slid 0.32% and 0.38% respectively, while Spanish banks BBVA (MC:BBVA) and Banco Santander (MC:SAN) tumbled 1% and 1.07%.
Altice NV (AS:ATCA) added to gains, with shares down 3.17% after the U.S. Justice department asked for a decision on the company’s bid to acquire Cablevision Systems Corp (N:CVC). to be deferred until a national security review can be completed.
Elsewhere, Volkswagen (DE:VOWG_p) gained 0.47% following reports the carmaker hired Kenneth Feinberg, the lawyer that handled the BP (L:BP) spill and GM switch claims, to head its consumer compensation program in the U.S.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 slipped 0.19%, despite broad gains in the mining sector.
Shares in Fresnillo PLC (L:FRES) gained 0.76% and BHP Billiton PLC (L:BLT) jumped 1.99%, while rival Anglo American PLC (L:AAL) surged 3.53%.
Financial stocks were also mostly higher, as the Royal Bank of Scotland (L:RBS) rose 0.34% and Barclays (L:BARC) gained 0.39%, while HSBC Holdings (L:HSBA) climbed 0.62%. Lloyds Banking (L:LLOY) underperformed, with shares easing 0.08%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a lower open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.35% decline, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.32% fall, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.22% slip.