Europe open: Markets mixed as Brexit talks stumble
European stocks were mixed on Thursday morning, with Brexit deal negotiations squarely in focus as representatives from the EU27 prepare to meet in Brussels.
At 0854 BST, the Stoxx 600 was 0.2% lower at 392.77, Germany's Dax was flat at 12,675.09 and the French CAC 40 fell by 0.1% to 5,690.65. Meanwhile, London's FTSE 100 was steady at 7,169.39.
The UK and European Union appeared on Wednesday evening to be on the cusp of finalising a Brexit deal, but Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party said earlier that it "cannot support what is being suggested on customs and consent issues". It also said there was "a lack of clarity on VAT".
London Capital Group analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya said: "Although the parties seem to have come close to a deal at this week’s talks, they couldn’t find a solution to the Irish border paradox yet. And the truth is, even if the leaders came to an agreement among themselves, there is only a slim chance for Boris Johnson to find sufficient support in Parliament to give it a green light."
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson will join EU leaders at a summit in Brussels later in the day.
Meanwhile, there were signs of further tension between Washington and Beijing as the US State Department said Chinese diplomats must notify authorities before meeting with American officials.
The Chinese embassy in the US called the measures a "violation of the Vienna Convention", appearing to show a further souring of relations between the two superpowers as they continue trade deal negotiations.
Among individual stocks, Ericsson topped the Stoxx 600 after boosting its current year guidance and its sales target for 2020, as the Scandinavian telecoms equipment maker said 5G was taking off earlier than expected.
Elisa Oyj was among the top risers after the Finnish telecoms outfit reported third quarter revenue growth of around 2% despite challenging conditions, while it also reaffirmed forecasts for annual growth.
French car parts specialist Faurecia dropped after its third quarter sales fell short of expectations, while Nordic telecoms operator Telia was in the red after it said said it would cap its share-buyback programme at 10 billion Swedish krona (£800m) due to a weak economic outlook.