European stocks turn lower in cautious trade; Dax down 0.26%

Investing.com - European stocks turned lower on Tuesday, as investors remained cautious ahead of the Federal Reserve's monthly policy statement and U.S. economic data, despite fresh hopes for progress on the euro zone front.

During European afternoon trade, the EURO STOXX 50 slid 0.33%, France’s CAC 40 edged down 0.27%, while Germany’s DAX 30 fell 0.26%.

Research group Gfk earlier said that its index of German consumer climate ticked up to 5.8 in January from a reading of 5.7 the previous month, beating expectations for the index to remain unchanged.

But overall market sentiment remained cautious ahead of a number of significant U.S. economic events later in the week, including data on fourth quarter growth and the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy statement on Wednesday, as well as Friday’s U.S. nonfarm payrolls data.

Financial stocks turned broadly lower, as shares in French lenders BNP Paribas and Societe Generale tumbled 1.32% and 2.38%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank declined 1.30% and 0.24% respectively.

Elsewhere, Sandvik, the world’s biggest maker of metal-cutting tools, dropped 0.87% after reporting lower-than-expected fourth-quarter profit.

On the upside, Philips jumped 1.76% after the lighting manufacturer posted fourth-quarter profit that beat analysts' estimates, helped by demand for medical equipment and job cuts.

In London, FTSE 100 dipped 0.02%, weighed by sharp losses in financial stocks.

Barclays plummeted 2.22% and Lloyds Banking tumbled 2.33%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland dove 4.93%. HSBC Holdings inched up 0.01% on the other hand.

The Wall Street Journal reported earlier that U.S. authorities are seeking a guilty plea to criminal charges from the Royal Bank of Scotland as part of a GBP500 million settlement of an interest-rate rigging probe.

Meanwhile, mining giants BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto remained higher, rising 0.28% and 0.92%, while rival company Evraz jumped 1.43%.

Oil and gas major Anglo American was also on the upside, rallying 2.31%, after it said it will write down USD4 billion of the value of its Minas-Rio iron-ore project in Brazil and raise estimated spending a sixth time after expense blowouts forced CEO Cynthia Carroll to quit.

In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a lower open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.21% fall, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.36% drop, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.35% loss.

Later in the day, the U.S. was to release reports on house price inflation and consumer confidence.