European stocks stay down ahead of EFSF vote; DAX slides 0.85%

Investing.com - European stock markets remained lower on Tuesday, as investors awaited the results of a key vote by Slovakia on expanding the euro zone rescue fund.

During European afternoon trade, the EURO STOXX 50 fell 1.18%, France’s CAC 40 dropped 1.23%, while Germany’s DAX 30 slid 0.85%.

Slovakia is to be the last of the euro zone's 17 members to vote on a deal to enhance the size and powers of the European Financial Stability Facility, but deep divisions within the government on the issue provoked tensions among investors ahead of the vote.

The energy sector was mixed, trimming earlier losses with shares in France's Total still down 0.75% and EDF edging up 0.09%, while shares in Germany's E.ON AG dropped 1.09%.

European lenders were also mixed, with Germany's Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank falling 0.89% and 2.49% respectively, while French lenders were up, with shares in BNP Paribas gaining 0.92% and Societe Generale rising 0.87%.

Meanwhile, shares in the telecom sector remained on the downside, with Spanish group Telefonica tumbling 2.09% and Germany's Deutsche Telekom sliding 0.49%, while French companies Alcatel-Lutent and France Telecom saw shares fall 2.91% and 1.39% respectively.

In London, the commodity-heavy FTSE 100 dropped 1.10%, tracking earlier losses in commodity prices.

Mining giants BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto saw shares plummet 2.59% and 2.18% respectively, while British Petroleum fell 1.31%.

Copper producers also largely contributed to losses, with Kazakhmys and Xstrata plunging 3.37% and 3.17%.

Shares in the financial sector remained mixed, as Lloyds Banking fell 0.70%, HSBC Holdings tumbled 1.53% and Barclays declined 0.33%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland advanced 0.33%.

Elsewhere, U.S. equity markets pointed to a broadly lower open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a drop of 0.53%, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.72% fall, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.39% decline.

Also Tuesday, officials from the European Union, International Monetary Fund and European Central Bank said in a statement that Greece will receive it next tranche of financial aid after Eurogroup and IMF officials approve the results of their review, most likely in early November.