(MENAFN- AFP) European equities mostly rose Tuesday with Frankfurt and Paris higher on hopes of a Greek breakthrough deal, but London was hit by falling commodity prices and weak data.
In early afternoon deals, Frankfurt's DAX 30 index of leading shares rose 0.89 percent to 10,758 points and in Paris the CAC 40 added 1.18 percent to 4,706.10 compared with Monday's close.
The Madrid stock market gained 1.47 percent and Milan won 1.46 percent in value.
"European stocks are predominantly on the front foot as investors warily await tomorrow's (Wednesday's) Eurogroup emergency meeting to discuss the stand-off with Greece's new anti-austerity government," said analyst Atif Latif at Guardian Stockbrokers in London.
"Elsewhere, a fall in oil prices has dragged down the UK's oil and gas heavy FTSE."
London's FTSE 100 index dipped 0.14 percent to 6,827.70 points, with shares also dented by official data showing that British industrial production fell by 0.2 percent in December from the month before.
In addition, the mining sector sank on the back of sliding metal prices, which were under pressure from weak Chinese inflation data.
Greece's new leftist government was fine-turning details Tuesday of a reform deal it hopes to seal with sceptical EU creditors at crucial talks this week to liberate the country from what it considers a "toxic" bailout.
Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras faced a confidence vote in parliament over his policy package, but while he was expected to breeze through his first domestic political test, time to woo those holding the purse-strings was running out.
At talks kicking off with an emergency meeting of eurozone finance ministers on Wednesday, Greece will plead its case for stop-gap financing with a view to clinching an austerity-free reform deal to run from September 1.
- Greece remains centre stage -
"Greece will remain centre stage throughout this week," said Rebecca O'Keeffe, head of investment at stockbroker Interactive Investor.
"Greece are relying on the rest of Europe folding, in what is increasingly becoming a game of high stakes poker. However, European politicians are currently calling their bluff.
"Without agreement, events could quickly come to a head if the ECB were to withdraw funding from Greek banks. This suggests further turmoil for both Greek and wider EU equity markets is likely."
The European Union sees little chance of any final pact to resolve the debt standoff with the new Greek government this week, a European Commission spokeswoman said.
But she also played down speculation of a possible Greek exit from the euro, a prospect that has spooked financial markets and governments around the world.
In foreign exchange deals on Tuesday, the European single currency declined to $1.1287 from $1.1325 late in New York on Monday.
Asian equities slipped Tuesday on renewed fears Greece will default on its debt obligations, but Shanghai rallied on fresh easing hopes after Chinese data showed inflation at its lowest level in more than five years.
Shanghai advanced on hopes for more monetary easing after China's inflation rate tumbled to 0.8 percent in January, well down from 1.5 percent in December and the lowest since November 2009.
The figures, which come despite an interest rate cut in November, are the latest to highlight problems in the world's number two economy and raise the spectre of possible deflation.
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