European Shares Decline As German Ifo Index Signals Tough Times Ahead

(RTTNews) - European stocks hit two-week lows on Tuesday as investors looked ahead to a slew of major central bank decisions later in the week and watched closely the latest political developments in Germany and France.

The single European currency remained near the 1,05 level, a day after a survey showed business activity in the eurozone declined further in December.

The release of German IFO index also signaled rough times ahead, with the corresponding indicator falling to 84.7 in December from 85.7 in November.

Elsewhere, U.K. wage growth accelerated more than forecast in the three months to October, cementing expectations that the Bank of England will hold off cutting interest rates on Thursday.

The pan European STOXX 600 dropped 0.3 percent to 514.06 after closing 0.1 percent lower on Monday.

The German DAX was marginally lower and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 dropped 0.6 percent while France's CAC 40 traded flat with a positive bias.

Energy giant BP Plc fell about 1 percent in London and peer Shell gave up 1.6 percent as crude oil prices extended losses on China demand concerns.

Bunzl slumped 4.5 percent after the business supplies distributor said persistent deflation, particularly in continental Europe, will have a slight impact on its annual profit.

Capita shares plummeted 8 percent. The outsourcing firm saw its revenue drop eight percent in the first 11 months of the year.

Airbus shares advanced 1.5 percent in Paris after Deutsche Bank upgraded its rating on the stock to "buy" from "hold".

Thyssenkrupp nucera AG shares were up 9 percent after the German company logged its highest quarterly sales for its alkaline electrolysers.