Investing.com - European stocks opened lower on Thursday, despite a rally in oil prices as political uncertainty in Italy continued to weigh on market sentiment.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 slipped 0.19%, France’s CAC 40 dipped 0.06%, while Germany’s DAX 30 fell 0.23%.
Energy stocks were mostly higher, as oil prices rallied after OPEC members agreed on Wednesday to reduce production by 1.2 million barrils per day.
French oil and gas major Total SA (PA:TOTF) climbed 0.51% and Italy’s ENI (MI:ENI) surged 2.28%, while Norwegian rival Statoil (OL:STL) jumped 1.50%.
But markets were still jittery as Italian citizens are set to vote on December 4 in a referendum on whether to overhaul their national constitution, which should help Prime Minister Matteo Renzi implement badly needed economic reforms.
The vote is widely seen as determining Renzi's political fate seeing as he may resign if a "no" vote prevails. The latest opinion polls show most Italians opposing the proposed constitutional changes.
Nonetheless, financial stocks were broadly higher, as French lenders BNP Paribas (PA:BNPP) and Societe Generale (PA:SOGN) rallied 1.04% and 1.11%, while Germany’s Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) and Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn) gained 0.20% and 1.01%.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy’s Intesa Sanpaolo (MI:ISP) and Unicredit (MI:CRDI) climbed 0.57% and 0.79% respectively. Spanish banks BBVA (MC:BBVA) and Banco Santander (MC:SAN) underperformed however, with shares sliding 0.34% and 0.42%.
Lufthansa AG (DE:LHAG) added to gains, as shares advanced 1.06% after the airline company said it made its German pilots a new wage offer to try to end strikes that are causing hundreds of flight cancellations and costing millions of euros a day.
In London, FTSE 100 dipped 0.03%, weighed by Unilever (LON:ULVR), whose shares plummeted 2.57% after Amnesty Internation slammed the company, along with Colgate and Nestlé, for palm oil supply chain abuses.
Meanwhile, financial stocks were mixed. Shares in Lloyds Banking (LON:LLOY) slipped 0.21% and Barclays (LON:BARC) dropped 0.60%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland (LON:RBS) gained 0.98% and Barclays rallied 1.08%.
Mining stocks were broadly higher on the commodity-heavy index, as Rio Tinto (LON:RIO) climbed 0.65% and BHP Billiton (LON:BLT) jumped 1.87%, while Glencore (LON:GLEN) surged 2.00%.
Energy stocks were also on the upside, thanks to the rally in oil prices. Oil and gas major Royal Dutch Shell (LON:RDSa) saw shares climb 2.80%, while rival company BP (LON:BP) soared 3.66%
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a steady open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.05% gain, S&P 500 futures showed a 0.03% dip, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.05% downtick.