Investing.com – European stock markets were mixed on Thursday, following the release of Chinese data that prompted speculation the country would further tighten monetary policy, while U.S. futures indexes pointed to a lower open on Wall Street.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 climbed 0.38%, France’s CAC 40 added 0.03%, while Germany's DAX was down 0.11%.
Earlier in the day, official data showed that China’s gross domestic product rose more-than-expected in the fourth quarter. A separate report showed that inflation rose slightly less-than-expected in December, fuelling speculation the country would do more to combat inflation and cool its economy.
Shares in automakers were broadly lower amid concerns that sales in China would decline. Europe’s largest automaker Volkswagen saw shares tumble 3.12%, shares in rival BMW dropped 2.28%, while French automaker Renault saw shares slump 2.29%.
But shares in the financial sector performed strongly as Italy’s largest lender Unicredit saw shares jump 3.37%. Shares in rival Intesa Sanpaolo surged 3.93%, while Spain’s biggest bank Banco Santander saw shares gain 1.40%.
Meanwhile, shares in pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline fell 2.16% after the stock was downgraded by Morgan Stanley.
In London, the FTSE 100 slumped 0.75% as shares in low-cost air carrier easyJet plummeted 13.84% after the company said a “difficult economic outlook” for Europe and higher fuel prices would weigh on earnings. Shares in rival RyanAir plunged 4.39%, while British Airways saw shares drop 2.71%.
Elsewhere, shares in the mining sector performed poorly following the release of the Chinese data. Shares in the world’s largest mining group BHP Billiton dropped 1.76%, rival Rio Tinto saw shares tumble 1.84%, while shares in copper producer Xstrata plunged 2.19%.
The outlook for U.S. equity markets, meanwhile, was downbeat ahead of earnings reports from global financial service provider Morgan Stanley and from the world’s biggest copper producer Freeport McMoran Copper & Gold.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a loss of 0.13%, S&P 500 futures indicated a drop of 0.09%, while the Nasdaq 100 futures pointed to a decline of 0.07%.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish a weekly report on jobless claims, as well as official data on existing home sales and a report on manufacturing activity in Philadelphia.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 climbed 0.38%, France’s CAC 40 added 0.03%, while Germany's DAX was down 0.11%.
Earlier in the day, official data showed that China’s gross domestic product rose more-than-expected in the fourth quarter. A separate report showed that inflation rose slightly less-than-expected in December, fuelling speculation the country would do more to combat inflation and cool its economy.
Shares in automakers were broadly lower amid concerns that sales in China would decline. Europe’s largest automaker Volkswagen saw shares tumble 3.12%, shares in rival BMW dropped 2.28%, while French automaker Renault saw shares slump 2.29%.
But shares in the financial sector performed strongly as Italy’s largest lender Unicredit saw shares jump 3.37%. Shares in rival Intesa Sanpaolo surged 3.93%, while Spain’s biggest bank Banco Santander saw shares gain 1.40%.
Meanwhile, shares in pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline fell 2.16% after the stock was downgraded by Morgan Stanley.
In London, the FTSE 100 slumped 0.75% as shares in low-cost air carrier easyJet plummeted 13.84% after the company said a “difficult economic outlook” for Europe and higher fuel prices would weigh on earnings. Shares in rival RyanAir plunged 4.39%, while British Airways saw shares drop 2.71%.
Elsewhere, shares in the mining sector performed poorly following the release of the Chinese data. Shares in the world’s largest mining group BHP Billiton dropped 1.76%, rival Rio Tinto saw shares tumble 1.84%, while shares in copper producer Xstrata plunged 2.19%.
The outlook for U.S. equity markets, meanwhile, was downbeat ahead of earnings reports from global financial service provider Morgan Stanley and from the world’s biggest copper producer Freeport McMoran Copper & Gold.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a loss of 0.13%, S&P 500 futures indicated a drop of 0.09%, while the Nasdaq 100 futures pointed to a decline of 0.07%.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish a weekly report on jobless claims, as well as official data on existing home sales and a report on manufacturing activity in Philadelphia.