Investing.com - European stocks were mixed on Tuesday, after the release of weak German business climate data and as Monday's economic reports continued to weigh.
During European afternoon trade, the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 eased 0.06%, France’s CAC 40 added 0.15%, while Germany’s DAX inched up 0.02%.
Data earlier showed that the German Ifo business climate index fell to a six-month low of 109.7 this month from 110.4 in May and compared to estimates of 110.3.
European equities came under pressure on Monday after data showed that the euro zone’s composite index of service and manufacturing sector activity fell to a six month low of 52.8 in June from 53.5 in May, indicating that the recovery in the region could be losing momentum.
France’s private sector continued to contract this month, dragging on the euro zone as a whole, while Germany private sector continued to expand this month, but at a slower than forecast rate.
Financial stocks turned broadly lower, as French lenders Societe Generale (PARIS:SOGN) and BNP Paribas (PARIS:BNPP) declined 0.82% and 0.10%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank (XETRA:DBKGn) dropped 0.53%.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo (MILAN:ISP) and Unicredit (MILAN:CRDI) plummeted 1.83% and 2.31% respectively. Spanish banks BBVA (MADRID:BBVA) and Banco Santander (MADRID:SAN) overperformed however, up 0.09% and 0.12%.
Elsewhere, Altice dove 5% after saying that it is selling about €950 million of new stock to help fund its stake increase in Numericable Group and cut debt.
In London, FTSE 100 slipped 0.15%, as U.K. lenders tracked their European counterparts lower.
Shares in Barclays (LONDON:BARC) retreated 0.49% and Lloyds Banking (LONDON:LLOY) lost 0.97%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland (LONDON:RBS) declined 0.91%. HSBC Holdings (LONDON:HSBA) held steady, inching up 0.03%.
Mining stocks also turned sharply lower, as Glencore Xstrata (LONDON:GLEN) dropped 1.01% and Rio Tinto (LONDON:RIO) tumbled 1.54%, while Vedanta Resources (LONDON:VED) plummeted 1.71%.
Meanwhile, Shire (LONDON:SHP) remained on the upside, advancing 1.03%, following reports the company hired Goldman Sachs as it faces potential takeover offers. Last week, Shire was said to have turned down a $46 billion bid from AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV).
Imagination Technologies Group (LONDON:IMG) added to gains, up 6.77%, after forecasting a high level of licensing activity for the full year.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a lower open. The Dow 30 futures pointed to a 0.19% fall, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.25% loss, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.22% decline.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release private sector data on consumer confidence, as well as a report on new home sales.