By Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch
LONDON (MarketWatch) — Most European stock markets declined for a second day on Wednesday, as banks and miners weighed on sentiment, while investors looked toward an interest-rate decision from the European Central Bank due later in the day.
The Stoxx Europe 600 index XX:SXXP -0.52% gave up 0.6% to 262.73, adding to a 1.1% loss from Tuesday.
The French CAC 40 index FR:PX1 -0.81% tumbled 1.1% to 3,365.13, further pressured by car makers Peugeot SA FR:UG -3.41% , off 4%, and Renault SA FR:RNO -2.22% , down 2.7%.
In Germany, Volkswagen AG DE:VOW +0.99% fell 1.7%, while Daimler AG DE:DAI -2.37% slipped 1.6%. The DAX 30 index DX:DAX -1.12% traded 1.4% lower at 6,88.07.
Commerzbank AG DE:CBK -3.08% also weighed on sentiment and gave up 2.5%, while Deutsche Bank AG DE:DBK -0.96% fell 1.5%.
Losses for European equities tracked overnight losses in Asia and on Wall Street, where investors sold off stocks on the back of the U.S. Federal Reserve signaling less of a need to stimulate the economy with further quantitative easing.
In Europe, investors were awaiting an interest-rate announcement from the ECB, which is widely expected to leave its key lending rate unchanged at a record low 1%. ECB President Mario Draghi will host his monthly news conference following the rate announcement. Draghi, ECB to maintain wait-and-see stance
In London, the FTSE 100 index UK:UKX -0.56% posted the smallest loss among major country-specific indexes and was off 0.5% at 5,807.57.
Miners weighed on the U.K. stock market as metals prices dropped across the board. Evraz PLC UK:EVR -3.11% gave up 3.8%, Vedanta Resources PLC UK:VED -1.95% lost 1.8%, and heavyweight Rio Tinto PLC UK:RIO -1.80% RIO -1.85% declined 1.9%.
Drug maker GlaxoSmithKline PLC UK:GSK +0.74% GSK -0.26% bucked the negative mood and took on 0.8%.
