Investing.com - European stocks were steady to lower on Thursday, as investors focused on a new series of corporate earnings reports.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 slipped 0.13%, France’s CAC 40 edged down 0.11%, while Germany’s DAX 30 dipped 0.02%.
Sentiment had improved after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen told the U.S. Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday that the central bank will likely need to raise interest rates at one of its upcoming meetings.
Ms. Yellen said that waiting too long to raise interest rates would be "unwise," given the rise in inflation and economic growth.
At her second day of economic testimony before Congress on Wednesday, she offered no addition information on the timing of the central bank’s next rate hike.
Financial stocks were mixed, as BNP Paribas (PA:BNPP) slipped 0.23% and Societe Generale (PA:SOGN) gained 0.66% in France, while Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn) dipped 0.03% and Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) declined 0.66% in Germany.
Among peripheral lenders, Intesa Sanpaolo (MI:ISP) advanced 0.82% and Unicredit (MI:CRDI) edged down 0.15% in Italy, while Spanish banks Banco Santander (MC:SAN) and BBVA (MC:BBVA) added 0.10% and 0.12% respectively.
Elsewhere, Nestle SA (SIX:NESN) shares tumbled 1.44% as the company said it aimed for 2-4% underlying sales growth this year after net profit fell and underlying sales rose less than expected last year.
On the upside, Air France KLM SA (PA:AIRF) surged 8.01% after announcing a sharp increase in net profit thanks to declining fuel costs.
In London, conmodity-heavy FTSE 100 slipped 0.14%, weighed by losses in the mining sector.
Shares in Glencore (LON:GLEN) declined 0.35% and Antofagasta (LON:ANTO) lost 1.91%, while rival company Anglo American (LON:AAL) plummeted 2.51%.
Meanwhile, financial stocks were broadly higher. Lloyds Banking (LON:LLOY) and the Royal Bank of Scotland (LON:RBS) were both up 0.12%, while HSBC Holdings (LON:HSBA) added 0.13% and Barclays (LON:BARC) rose 0.21%.
IAG (LON:ICAG) was one of the top performers on the index, with shares jumping 2.28% following reports earlier in the week that the company sealed a deal to take seven long-range variants of Airbus Group (PA:AIR) SE’s A321neo single-aisle jetliner for Irish arm Aer Lingus.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.05% dip, S&P 500 futures showed a 0.06% downtick, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.05% gain.