Europe midday: Stocks little changed ahead of ECB's Lagarde

Stocks across the Continent were little changed ahead of European Central Bank chief, Christine Lagarde's press conference.

The ECB had earlier announced that all its main policy settings were unchanged, as expected, but some observers were expecting that Lagarde would attempt to 'talk down the euro'.

"European markets are edging lower ahead of the ECB, as the bullish sentiment that was so prevalent yesterday pauses for breath," said IG chief market analyst Chris Beauchamp.

"Some will be wondering if the correction of the past week has run its course, which would be in line with the scope and duration of pullbacks for the this rally, or whether the upcoming US election, Brexit and a host of concerns about renewed lockdowns and economic weakness will lead to a more sustained drop into October."

As of 1301 BST, the Stoxx 600 was dipping 0.34% to 368.4, while the Cac-40 was drifting lower by 0.22% to 5,031.32.

The German Dax on the other hand was up 0.09% to 13,248.54 and the FTSE Mibtel by 0.34% to 19,837.36.

Italian industrial production jumped at a 7.4% month-on-month pace in July, surprising economists who had been anticipating a rise of 3.8%.

French industrial output increased by only 3.8% during the same month, falling a bit short of consensus for a rise of 5.0%.