Investing.com - European stocks opened lower on Wednesday, weighed by declining oil prices and as trading volumes remained thin ahead of the New Year holiday.
Heading into the final week of the year, trading volumes are expected to remain light as many traders already closed books, reducing liquidity in the market which could result in exaggerated moves.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 fell 0.21%, France’s CAC 40 declined 0.43%, while Germany’s DAX 30 slid 0.50%.
Investors continued to focus on the oil market amid ongoing concerns over a global supply glut and the lack of demand.
Crude oil futures for February delivery were down 1.62% at $37.26 in early European trade, re-approaching the 11-year low of $35.98 hit on December 22.
Financial stocks were broadly lower, as French lenders BNP Paribas (PA:BNPP) and Societe Generale (PA:SOGN) slid 0.36% and 0.55%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn) and Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) fell 0.29% and 0.50%.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy's Unicredit (MI:CRDI) and Intesa Sanpaolo (MI:ISP) declined 0.38% and 0.45% respectively, while Spanish banks Banco Santander (MC:SAN) and BBVA (MC:BBVA) retreated 0.48% and 0.67%.
Energy stocks added to losses, as Total SA (PA:TOTF) dropped 0.69%, while Italy’s ENI (MI:ENI) declined 0.61%.
Elsewhere, shares in insurance giant AXA were down 0.78% even after closing its €31 million takeover of Brazil’s SulAmérica Companhia de Seguros Gerais.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 slid 0.59%, weighed by sharp losses in the mining sector.
Shares in Glencore (L:GLEN) tumbled 1.34% and Bhp Billiton (L:BLT) lost 1.42%, while Rio Tinto (L:RIO) plummeted 1.47%.
Financial stocks were also on the downside, as Lloyds Banking (L:LLOY) and Barclays (L:BARC) retreated 0.50% and 0.70% respectively, while the Royal Bank of Scotland (L:RBS) lost 1.34% and HSBC Holdings (L:HSBA) plunged 1.76%.
Barclays was in the spotlight on Wednesday following reports it will pay almost $14 million to settle U.S. regulatory charges that it let retail brokerage customers make unsuitable mutual fund transactions, including more than 6,100 fund switches, over a five-year period.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a lower open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.17% fall, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.16% loss, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.14% slip.