Investing.com - European stocks were higher on Thursday, although concerns over the handling of Spain's financial woes continued to weigh on market sentiment after Standard & Poor's downgraded the country's credit rating.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 eased up 0.08%, France’s CAC 40 rose 0.31%, while Germany’s DAX 30 climbed 0.57%.
S&P cut its rating on Spain to BBB-minus from BBB-plus with a negative outlook late Wednesday, citing "mounting risks to Spain’s public finances."
The ratings agency also warned that the capacity of Spanish political institutions to deal with the challenges presented by the current fiscal and economic crisis is declining.
Markets were also jittery amid ongoing uncertainty over Spain’s position on requesting external financial aid and what form a bailout would take.
In the financial sector, German lenders Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank climbed 1.41% and 0.35%, while France's Societe Generale and BNP Paribas advanced 0.88% and 0.61% respectively.
Peripheral lenders trended lower on the other hand. Shares in Italian banks Unicredit and Intesa Sanpaolo dropped 0.30% and 0.40%, while Spain's BBVA and Banco Santander declined 1.05% and 1.12%.
Elsewhere, French retail group Carrefour surged 4.63%, after posting a small rise in third-quarter revenue.
In London, FTSE 100 added 0.31%, boosted by gains in financial stocks.
Shares in HSBC Holdings climbed 0.63% and the Royal Bank of Scotland jumped 2.17%, while Lloyds Banking rallied 2.21% and Barclays surged 2.27%.
Mining giants Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton added to gains, as shares advanced 1.46% and 1.51%, while copper producers Xstrata and Kazakhmys rallied 1.39% and 2.97%.
Retailers were also on the upside, as Burberry's soared 8.82% after saying that revenue in the first half of the year increased 6% from last year, while Tesco added 0.68%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.22% rise, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.31% gain, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.41% increase.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish government data on the trade balance, in addition to official data on initial jobless claims, import prices and crude oil stockpiles.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 eased up 0.08%, France’s CAC 40 rose 0.31%, while Germany’s DAX 30 climbed 0.57%.
S&P cut its rating on Spain to BBB-minus from BBB-plus with a negative outlook late Wednesday, citing "mounting risks to Spain’s public finances."
The ratings agency also warned that the capacity of Spanish political institutions to deal with the challenges presented by the current fiscal and economic crisis is declining.
Markets were also jittery amid ongoing uncertainty over Spain’s position on requesting external financial aid and what form a bailout would take.
In the financial sector, German lenders Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank climbed 1.41% and 0.35%, while France's Societe Generale and BNP Paribas advanced 0.88% and 0.61% respectively.
Peripheral lenders trended lower on the other hand. Shares in Italian banks Unicredit and Intesa Sanpaolo dropped 0.30% and 0.40%, while Spain's BBVA and Banco Santander declined 1.05% and 1.12%.
Elsewhere, French retail group Carrefour surged 4.63%, after posting a small rise in third-quarter revenue.
In London, FTSE 100 added 0.31%, boosted by gains in financial stocks.
Shares in HSBC Holdings climbed 0.63% and the Royal Bank of Scotland jumped 2.17%, while Lloyds Banking rallied 2.21% and Barclays surged 2.27%.
Mining giants Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton added to gains, as shares advanced 1.46% and 1.51%, while copper producers Xstrata and Kazakhmys rallied 1.39% and 2.97%.
Retailers were also on the upside, as Burberry's soared 8.82% after saying that revenue in the first half of the year increased 6% from last year, while Tesco added 0.68%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.22% rise, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.31% gain, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.41% increase.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish government data on the trade balance, in addition to official data on initial jobless claims, import prices and crude oil stockpiles.