Investing.com - European stocks turned broadly lower on Tuesday, after the release of disappointing German data, while markets eyed Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's testimony to Congress on Wednesday.
During European afternoon trade, the EURO STOXX 50 declined 0.38%, France’s CAC 40 shed 0.39%, while Germany’s DAX 30 slipped 0.12%.
The ZEW Centre for Economic Research said that its index of German economic sentiment fell to 36.3 in the current month from 38.5 in June. Analysts had expected a reading of 39.6.
Meanwhile, the ZEW index of euro zone economic sentiment improved to 32.8 in July from 30.6 in June, above expectations for a reading of 31.8.
Markets were jittery ahead of Bernanke's testimony on monetary policy amid speculation over the timing of a possible reduction to the bank’s USD85 billion-a-month bond buying program.
Financial stocks remained broadly lower, as French lenders BNP Paribas and Societe Generale declined 0.52% and 0.37%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank slid 0.30%.
Among peripheral lenders, Spanish banks BBVA and Banco Santander tumbled 0.82% and 1.02% respectively, while Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo and Unicredit gained 0.16% and 0.62%.
Elsewhere, Telecom Italia plummeted 3.14% after the Italian telephone company put on hold a network separation plan, saying a decision by the country’s communications regulator last week to cut access fees to the carrier’s network may "affect its feasibility."
On the upside, Deutsche Lufthansa rallied 1.26% as Goldman Sachs raised its recommendation for airline to "neutral" from "sell".
In London, FTSE 100 dipped 0.03%, after data showed that consumer price inflation in the U.K. rose slightly less-than-expected in June.
Mining giants BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto extended earlier gains, surging 2.37% and 2.77% respectively, while Anglo American jumped 1.81% and Eurasian Natural Resources advanced 2.67%.
Rio Tinto said earlier that second-quarter iron-ore production jumped 7% from last year, beating analysts' estimates.
Meanwhile, financial stocks turned mostly higher. HSBC Holdings eased up 0.04% and Barclays climbed 0.76%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland gained 0.70%. Lloyds Banking was down 0.17% on the other hand.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a steady open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.09% rise, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.04% gain, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.09% increase.
Also Tuesday, official data showed that consumer price inflation in the euro zone held steady at a seasonally adjusted 1.6% in June, unchanged from an initial estimate and in line with expectations.
Later in the day, the U.S. was also to release official data on consumer price inflation and a report on industrial production.
During European afternoon trade, the EURO STOXX 50 declined 0.38%, France’s CAC 40 shed 0.39%, while Germany’s DAX 30 slipped 0.12%.
The ZEW Centre for Economic Research said that its index of German economic sentiment fell to 36.3 in the current month from 38.5 in June. Analysts had expected a reading of 39.6.
Meanwhile, the ZEW index of euro zone economic sentiment improved to 32.8 in July from 30.6 in June, above expectations for a reading of 31.8.
Markets were jittery ahead of Bernanke's testimony on monetary policy amid speculation over the timing of a possible reduction to the bank’s USD85 billion-a-month bond buying program.
Financial stocks remained broadly lower, as French lenders BNP Paribas and Societe Generale declined 0.52% and 0.37%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank slid 0.30%.
Among peripheral lenders, Spanish banks BBVA and Banco Santander tumbled 0.82% and 1.02% respectively, while Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo and Unicredit gained 0.16% and 0.62%.
Elsewhere, Telecom Italia plummeted 3.14% after the Italian telephone company put on hold a network separation plan, saying a decision by the country’s communications regulator last week to cut access fees to the carrier’s network may "affect its feasibility."
On the upside, Deutsche Lufthansa rallied 1.26% as Goldman Sachs raised its recommendation for airline to "neutral" from "sell".
In London, FTSE 100 dipped 0.03%, after data showed that consumer price inflation in the U.K. rose slightly less-than-expected in June.
Mining giants BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto extended earlier gains, surging 2.37% and 2.77% respectively, while Anglo American jumped 1.81% and Eurasian Natural Resources advanced 2.67%.
Rio Tinto said earlier that second-quarter iron-ore production jumped 7% from last year, beating analysts' estimates.
Meanwhile, financial stocks turned mostly higher. HSBC Holdings eased up 0.04% and Barclays climbed 0.76%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland gained 0.70%. Lloyds Banking was down 0.17% on the other hand.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a steady open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.09% rise, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.04% gain, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.09% increase.
Also Tuesday, official data showed that consumer price inflation in the euro zone held steady at a seasonally adjusted 1.6% in June, unchanged from an initial estimate and in line with expectations.
Later in the day, the U.S. was also to release official data on consumer price inflation and a report on industrial production.