Europe Stocks Slip Ahead Of ECB, U.S. Jobs Data

European stock markets traded in negative territory at the open on Wednesday, as investors remained cautious ahead of key events later in the week, such as central bank meetings and U.S. employment data. “Thus, over the next few days control of the markets could swing quite sharply as investors could find themselves wrestling with a combination of events which may dictate sentiment,” said Shavaz Dhalla, financial trader at Spreadex, in a note.

The Stoxx Europe 600 index fell 0.2% to 296.96. Shares of Delhaize Group lost 3%, after HSBC cut the supermarket retailer to underweight from neutral. Shares of France Telecom gave up 2.6%, after UBS late the prior day cut the firm to sell from neutral. Among country-specific indexes, France’s CAC 40 index lost 0.6% to 3,783.33, while Germany’s DAX 30 index shed 0.1% to 7,935.10. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 index lost 0.4% to 6,467.21.

Marketwatch