Heading into the final trading session of the year, volumes are expected to remain light as many traders already closed books, reducing liquidity in the market which could result in exaggerated moves.
German, French, Italian, Irish, Swiss and Russian markets were all closed for New Year's Eve. Spain’s IBEX was set to close early at 14.00 CET.
Investors continued to focus on the oil market amid ongoing concerns over a global supply glut after the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported an unexpected rise in crude oil inventories on Wednesday.
Crude oil futures for February delivery were at $36.72 in early European trade, not far from the 11-year low of $35.98 hit on December 22.
Financial stocks were broadly lower, as Spanish banks BBVA (MC:BBVA) and Banco Santander (MC:SAN) lost 0.16% and 0.74% respectively.
In London, FTSE 100 fell 0.23%, as U.K. lenders tracked their European counterparts lower.
The U.K. market was set to close early at 12:30 PM London time for New Year’s Eve.
Shares in HSBC Holdings (L:HSBA) slid 0.37% and Barclays (L:BARC) dropped 0.60%, while Lloyds Banking (L:LLOY) tumbled 1.01%. The Royal Bank of Scotland (L:RBS) overperformed, with shares adding 0.13%.
Mining stocks were also mostly lower on the commodity-heavy index. Bhp Billiton (L:BLT) and Randgold Resources (L:RRS) slipped 0.28% and 0.36% respectively, while Glencore (L:GLEN) declined 0.45%.
On the upside, Vodafone (L:VOD) jumped 1.20% amid reports of a possible £140 billion merger with cable company Liberty Global (O:LBTYA).
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a steady to higher open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.09% gain, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.09% rise, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.08% uptick.
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