Investing.com - European stocks opened lower on Tuesday, as oil prices retreated after rallying on Monday and as investors eyed the release of German business climate data due later in the day.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 slid 0.69%, France’s CAC 40 dropped 0.55%, while Germany’s DAX 30 declined 0.89%.
Oil prices began to decline once more on Tuesday as concerns over rising Iranian production following the end of international sanctions resurfaced.
Separately, OPEC Secretary General Abdalla Salem El-Badri said on Monday that oil producers are still "feeling the water" over a possible deal to freeze production.
Energy-related stocks were broadly lower, as French oil and gas major Total SA (PA:TOTF) tumbled 1.26% and Italian rival ENI (MI:ENI) lost 1.38%, while Norway’s Statoil declined 1.37%.
Financial stocks added to losses, as BNP Paribas (PA:BNPP) and Societe Generale (PA:SOGN) plummeted 1.51% and 1.57%, while Germany’s Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn) and Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) retreated 1.18% and 2.15%.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy’s Unicredit (MI:CRDI) and Intesa Sanpaolo (MI:ISP) slumped 1.70% and 2.11% respectively, while Spanish banks Banco Santander (MC:SAN) and BBVA (MC:BBVA) lost 1.06% and 1.27%.
On the upside, Danone SA (PA:DANO) saw shares surge 2.25% after the yogurt maker forecast profitability to improve in 2016.
Thales (PA:TCFP) soared 7% after the French electronic systems company raised its mid-term revenue forecast as orders reached a record and growth in military-equipment deliveries resulted in a 44% increase in profit last year.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 dropped 0.82%, weighed by sharp losses in the mining sector.
Shares in Rio Tinto (L:RIO) tumbled 1.78% and Anglo American (L:AAL) lost 2.68%, while Bhp Billiton (L:BLT) and Glencore (L:GLEN) plunged 3.30% and 3.51% respectively.
Financial stocks were also mostly lower, as HSBC Holdings (L:HSBA) slipped 0.20% and Lloyds Banking (L:LLOY) declined 0.87%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland (L:RBS) retreated 1.02% and Barclays (L:BARC) plummeted 1.82%.
Meanwhile, Persimmon (L:PSN) was one of the top performers on the index, with shares surging 5.02% after the housebuilder reported a 34% climb in pre-tax profit in 2015.
Also in the U.K., investors continued to focus on discussions over a posssible British exit from the European Union, with a referendum now set to be held in June.
The bosses of a third of Britain's biggest companies warned on Tuesday that an exit from the EU would put the economy at risk and threaten jobs.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a lower open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.35% slide, S&P 500 futures a 0.39% loss, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.52% drop.