Investing.com - European markets opened mostly higher on Thursday, as investors shrugged off concerns over North Korea and looked ahead to euro zone inflation data due later in the day.
The EURO STOXX 50 rose 0.21%, France’s CAC 40 added 0.08%, while Germany’s DAX 30 was up 0.27% by 03:35 a.m. ET (07:35 GMT).
Markets showed little reaction after North Korean said on Wednesday that it had successfully launched a new type of intercontinental ballistic missile that it claimed was capable of reaching the U.S. mainland.
Financial stocks were mostly higher, as French lender Societe Generale (PA:SOGN) added 0.09%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn) and Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) gained 0.65% and 1.029%
Among peripheral lenders, Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo (MI:ISP) and Unicredit (MI:CRDI) rose 0.07% and 0.41% respectively, while Spanish banks Banco Santander (MC:SAN) and BBVA (MC:BBVA) gained 0.39% and 0.15%.
French carmaker Peugeot SA (PA:PEUP) added to gains, with shares up 2.11%, after its parent company PSA Group, which paid General Motors (NYSE:GM) €1.3 billion for Opel, said it wants about half of the money back.
The request came after discovering the full extent of Opel's carbon dioxide emissions issues and exposure to European fines.
Meanwhile, energy-related stocks were lower ahead of highly anticipated meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, scheduled on Thursay. At this meeting, OPEC members were set to decide whether or not to prolong its supply cut efforts beyond the March 2018 deadline.
French oil and gas major Total SA (PA:TOTF) saw shares slip 0.15%, while Italy's ENI (MI:ENI) eased 0.07% and Norwegian rival Statoil (OL:STL) dropped 0.90%.
In London, FTSE 100 declined 0.40%, weighed by Micro Focus International PLC (LON:MCRO), whose shares were down 1.88%. Earlier in the week, Deutsche Bank downgraded its rating on the stock to “hold” from “buy”.
Financial stocks were also broadly lower, as the Royal Bank of Scotland (LON:RBS) and HSBC Holdings (LON:HSBA) retreated 0.78% and 0.79% respectively, while Lloyds Banking (LON:LLOY) dropped 0.88% and Barclays (LON:BARC) tumbled 1.11%.
Mining stocks added to losses on the commodity-heavy index. Shares in BHP Billiton (LON:BLT) fell 0.15% and Anglo American (LON:AAL) slid 0.25%, while rival company Glencore (LON:GLEN) plummeted 1.81%.
On the upside, BAE Systems (LON:BAES) was one of the best performers on the index, with shares up 2.94% after the defense group said on Thursday that its transition to a new accounting standard was not expected to affect results for 2018 and beyond.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a steady to higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.23% increase, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.11% gain, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.04% uptick.