Investing.com - European stocks were mostly lower on Friday, as a fresh decline in oil prices weighed on sentiment, although the possibility for additional easing measures by the European Central Bank lent some support.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 fell 0.22%, France’s CAC 40 eased 0.07%, while Germany’s DAX 30 slid 0.46%.
Oil prices resumed their downward trend on Friday, a day after the Energy Information Administration said U.S. crude inventories rose by 2.1 million barrels last week, to a peak of 504.1 million barrels.
Separately, Iraq's oil minister said on Thursday that talks would continue between OPEC and non-OPEC members to find ways to restore "normal" oil prices following a meeting on Wednesday.
But European equities remained supported after the minutes of the ECB’s January meeting, released on Thursday, signaled that the bank is prepared to inject further monetary easing next month if necessary to bolster growth.
“In a situation where risks were predominantly on the downside and new downside risks were emerging, it would be preferable to act pre-emptively,” the minutes said.
Financial stocks were mixed, as Societe Generale (PA:SOGN) eased 0.08% and BNP Paribas (PA:BNPP) rose 0.37%, while Germany’s Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) and Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn) gained 0.40% and 0.94%.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy’s Unicredit (MI:CRDI) and Intesa Sanpaolo (MI:ISP) declined 0.85% and 1.09% respectively, while Spanish banks Banco Santander (MC:SAN) and BBVA (MC:BBVA) added 0.06% and 0.18%.
Elsewhere, Dutch insurance firm Aegon reported a 20% increase in fourth-quarter net profit, but shares were still down 3.14%
Allianz (DE:ALVG) plunged 3.50% even after the German insurer said operating profit for 2015 climbed 3.2%, near the upper end of its target range for the year.
In London, FTSE 100 edged up 0.08%, as discussions were set to continue in Brussels regarding Britain's European Union membership.
Meanwhile, mining stocks were mixed on the commodity-heavy index. Shares in Bhp Billiton (L:BLT) dropped 0.58% and Glencore (L:GLEN) tumbled 1.15%, while Fresnillo (L:FRES) and Anglo American (L:AAL) rallied 0.98% and 2.31% respectively.
Financial stocks were mostly lower, as Barclays (L:BARC) edged down 0.12% and Lloyds Banking (L:LLOY) slipped 0.13%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland (L:RBS) declined 0.36%. HSBC Holdings (L:HSBA) overperformed, with shares climbing 0.50%.
Barclays was expected to tell staff on Friday that Tom King will step down as head of its investment bank, according to a Reuters report.
On the upside, Standard Life (L:SL) jumped 1.51% after the insurance company reported full-year profit of £1.42 billion compared with £503 million a year ago.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a steady open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.02% uptick, S&P 500 futures a 0.04% gain, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.01% dip.