(MENAFN- FxPro) European stocks were mostly lower on Monday, as markets were jittery ahead of a meeting between eurogroup finance ministers and Greece scheduled later in the day.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 retreated 0.79%, France's CAC 40 tumbled 1.18%, while Germany's DAX 30 slid 0.39%.
Greece and the euro zone were to hold a fresh round of talks later Monday as Athens scrambles to reach an agreement on a package of economic reforms in order to access fresh bailout funds.
Ahead of the talks Greece's government indicated that it was still hopeful that progress would be made but euro zone officials have indicated that too many issues still remain unresolved.
Greece was due to repay approximately ‚¬770 to the International Monetary Fund on Tuesday.
Financial stocks were mixed, as French lenders Societe Generale (PARIS:SOGN) and BNP Paribas (PARIS:BNPP) declined 0.20% and 0.87%, while Commerzbank (XETRA:CBKG) rallied 1.26% and Deutsche Bank (XETRA:DBKGn) inched up 0.02% in Germany.
Among peripheral lenders however, Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo (MILAN:ISP) and Unicredit (MILAN:CRDI) fell 0.17% and 0.80% respectively, while Spanish banks BBVA (MADRID:BBVA) and Banco Santander (MADRID:SAN) slid 0.32% and 0.34% respectively.
Elsewhere, Airbus Group (PARIS:AIR) saw shares plummet 4.2% after one of the company's A400M military transport aircraft crashed in Spain on Saturday, killing four people.
On the upside, TomTom (AMS:TOM2) advanced 0.84% after the Amsterdam-based company announced that its chief financial officer will step down in July.
In London, FTSE 100 rose 0.30%, still supported by the Conservative Party's surprise win in British elections late last week and as markets eyed the Bank of England's upcoming policy statement.
Mining stocks were broadly higher on the commodity-heavy index, as Rio Tinto (LONDON:RIO) gained 1.03% and Bhp Billiton (LONDON:BLT) jumped 1.31%, while Anglo American (LONDON:AAL) and Glencore Xstrata (LONDON:GLEN) rallied 1.41% and 1.46% respectively.
In the financial sector, stocks were mixed. Shares in Lloyds Banking (LONDON:LLOY) added 0.29% and Barclays (LONDON:BARC) climbed 0.71%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland (LONDON:RBS) slipped 0.11% and HSBC Holdings (LONDON:HSBA) retreated 0.70%.
Meanwhile, Intercontinental Hotels Group (LONDON:IHG) led losses on the index, down 0.69% after rallying on Friday when the group reported that first-quarter room revenue exceeded analysts' estimates.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a steady open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.02% dip, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.04% loss, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.01% downtick.
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