http://www.investing.com/news/stock...-mixed-earnings-reports;-dax-down-1.50-399454
Investing.com - European stocks opened lower on Tuesday, after mixed earnings reports from a number of European lenders and as disappointing manufacturing activity data from China dampened market sentiment.
During European morning trade, the
EURO STOXX 50 lost 1%, France’s
CAC 40 retreated 0.92%, while Germany’s
DAX 30 tumbled 1.50%.
Data showed that
China’s Caixin manufacturing purchasing managers’ index ticked down to 49.4 in April from 49.7 the previous month, compared to expectations for a rise to 49.9.
The weak data added to concerns over slowdown in the world’s second largest economy.
Financial stocks were mixed, as BNP Paribas (PA:
BNPP) surged 2.96% and Societe Generale (PA:
SOGN) slid 0.42% in France, while Germany’s Deutsche Bank (DE:
DBKGn) and Commerzbank (DE:
CBKG) plunged 2.03% and 5.40%.
BNP Paribas earlier reported a 10% increase in first-quarter net profit, beating analysts’ expectations, while Commerzbank reported a 52% year-on-year drop in first-quarter net income.
Among peripheral lenders, Italy’s Unicredit (MI:
CRDI) and Intesa Sanpaolo (MI:
ISP) gained 0.31% and 0.59% respectively, while Spanish banks BBVA (MC:
BBVA) and Banco Santander (MC:
SAN) lost 0.76% and 1.10%.
Elsewhere, UBS Group AG (SIX:
UBSG) saw shares plummet 3.93% after the Swiss bank reported a decline in first-quarter adjusted profit before tax.
In London, commodity-heavy
FTSE 100 fell 0.27%, weighed by sharp losses in the mining sector.
Shares in Bhp Billiton (LON:
BLT) retreated 2.59% and Glencore (LON:
GLEN) tumbled 3.02%, while rivals Rio Tinto (LON:
RIO) and Anglo American (LON:
AAL) dove 3.63% and 4.56% respectively.
Meanwhile, financial stocks were mixed. Barclays (LON:
BARC) slid 0.61% and the Royal Bank of Scotland (LON:
RBS) lost 0.87%, while Lloyds Banking (LON:
LLOY) rose 0.24% and HSBC Holdings (LON:
HSBA) jumped 0.91%.
HSBC earlier reported an 18% decline in adjusted pre-tax profit for the first quarter.
RSA Insurance Group PLC (LON:
RSA) was one of the top performers on the index, with shares rallying 3.57% after analysts at Barclays upgraded the stock’s rating to ‘overweight’.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a lower open. The
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.33% slide,
S&P 500 futures a 0.29% fall, while the
Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.35% decline.
