Investing.com - European markets opened mostly higher on Monday, as sentiment remained positive and as German coalition talks were set to dominate investors' attention.
The EURO STOXX 50 edged 0.19% higher, France’s CAC 40 added 0.19%, while Germany’s DAX 30 was up 0.36% by 03:30 a.m. ET (07:30 GMT).
German Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany entered talks with a rival party in a last-ditch effort to form a coalition government after months of political uncertainty in the euro zone's largest economy.
Financial stocks were mixed, as French lenders BNP Paribas (PA:BNPP) and Societe Generale (PA:SOGN) gained 0.42% and 0.12%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn) and Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) lost 1.32% and 1.07%.
Among peripheral lenders, Intesa Sanpaolo (MI:ISP) slid 0.36% and Unicredit (MI:CRDI) edged up 0.12% in Italy, while Spanish banks BBVA (MC:BBVA) and Banco Santander (MC:SAN) added 0.12% and 0.19% respectively.
Elsewhere, Airbus Group (PA:AIR) saw shares advance 0.83% amid reports the company is trying to reach new deals with China on the A380, in a move to get new costumers.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 slipped 0.15%, led by Micro Focus International PLC (LON:MCRO), whose shares dove 11.33% after first half results missed expectations. The company also appointed former Arm Holdings executive Chris Kennedy as its new chief financial officer.
Financial stocks were also on the downside, as Lloyds Banking (LON:LLOY) dipped 0.06% and Barclays (LON:BARC) edged down 0.16%, while HSBC Holdings (LON:HSBA) dropped 0.50%. The Royal Bank of Scotland (LON:RBS) overperformed, with shares rising 0.22%.
Meanwhile, mining stocks were higher on the commodity-heavy index. Shares in Rio Tinto (LON:RIO) inched up 0.08% and Glencore (LON:GLEN) rose 0.37%, while BHP Billiton (LON:BLT) climbed 0.77%.
Standard Life (LON:SLA) was one of the top performers on the index, with shares up 1.22% following news earlier in the week that group's financial planning arm, 1825, struck a deal to acquire a financial management firm, adding £400m to its assets under advice.
In other news, UK Prime Minister Theresa May said over the weekend there would be a cabinet reshuffle this week.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a mixed open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.16% rise, S&P 500 futures signaled a flat open, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.01% uptick.