Investing.com - European stock markets were mixed on Wednesday, as investors remained concerned over the euro zone’s debt crisis ahead of a series of Italian debt auctions later in the day.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 eased up 0.03%, France’s CAC 40 rose 0.37%, while Germany’s DAX 30 declined 0.42%.
While markets in the U.K. returned after an extended holiday break, most investors were already away on year-end leave, resulting in low trading volumes and subdued trade.
Italy was scheduled to sell EUR9 billion euros of 179-day bills and EUR2.5 billion euros of zero-coupon 2013 securities later Wednesday.
Ahead of the auctions, markets were jittery as the yield on Italy’s ten-year bonds remained close to the 7% threshold, a level widely considered unsustainable and above which other euro zone governments had been forced to seek bailouts.
Financial stocks led losses as shares in Germany’s Deutsche Bank tumbled 2.20% and Dutch lender ING Group dropped 1.95%, while France’s Societe Generale and Credit Agricole plummeted 1.95% and 1.87% respectively.
Peripheral lenders were also broadly lower with Italian Unicredit and Intesa Sanpaolo declining 1.14% and 0.20%, while Spanish BBVA and Banco Santander retreated 0.76% and 0.55%.
Meanwhile, French group Carrefour slid 0.29% after selling and leasing back 97 supermarket sites in France.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 rose 0.28%, despite sharp losses in the mining sector.
Mining giants Rio Tinto and Bhp Billiton declined 1.19% and 0.83%, while copper producers Xstrata and Kazakhmys tumbled 2.14% and 1.13% respectively.
Financial stocks were also broadly lower as shares in Lloyds Banking plunged 1.56% and the Royal Bank of Scotland dropped 1.02%, while Barclays and HSBC Holdings slumped 0.77% and 0.38%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a mixed open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a rise of 0.07%, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.02% fall, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.05% gain.
Italy was also scheduled to auction EUR8.5 billion euros of debt due in 2014, 2018, 2021 and 2022 on Thursday.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 eased up 0.03%, France’s CAC 40 rose 0.37%, while Germany’s DAX 30 declined 0.42%.
While markets in the U.K. returned after an extended holiday break, most investors were already away on year-end leave, resulting in low trading volumes and subdued trade.
Italy was scheduled to sell EUR9 billion euros of 179-day bills and EUR2.5 billion euros of zero-coupon 2013 securities later Wednesday.
Ahead of the auctions, markets were jittery as the yield on Italy’s ten-year bonds remained close to the 7% threshold, a level widely considered unsustainable and above which other euro zone governments had been forced to seek bailouts.
Financial stocks led losses as shares in Germany’s Deutsche Bank tumbled 2.20% and Dutch lender ING Group dropped 1.95%, while France’s Societe Generale and Credit Agricole plummeted 1.95% and 1.87% respectively.
Peripheral lenders were also broadly lower with Italian Unicredit and Intesa Sanpaolo declining 1.14% and 0.20%, while Spanish BBVA and Banco Santander retreated 0.76% and 0.55%.
Meanwhile, French group Carrefour slid 0.29% after selling and leasing back 97 supermarket sites in France.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 rose 0.28%, despite sharp losses in the mining sector.
Mining giants Rio Tinto and Bhp Billiton declined 1.19% and 0.83%, while copper producers Xstrata and Kazakhmys tumbled 2.14% and 1.13% respectively.
Financial stocks were also broadly lower as shares in Lloyds Banking plunged 1.56% and the Royal Bank of Scotland dropped 1.02%, while Barclays and HSBC Holdings slumped 0.77% and 0.38%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a mixed open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a rise of 0.07%, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.02% fall, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.05% gain.
Italy was also scheduled to auction EUR8.5 billion euros of debt due in 2014, 2018, 2021 and 2022 on Thursday.