Investing.com - European stocks were lower on Wednesday, as security concerns following Friday's Paris attacks continued to plague market sentiment.
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 declined 0.59%, France’s CAC 40 retreated 0.82%, while Germany’s DAX 30 dropped 0.45%.
Attackers killed more than 130 people in Paris on Friday, prompting retaliatory French air strikes against Islamic State in Syria.
On Wednesday morning, police confirmed that three terrorists were killed in an ongoing raid on Saint-Denis, Paris.
In addition, Air France said that two Paris-bound flights that had been diverted following anonymous threats had landed safely.
Air France shares were down 0.99% following the news.
Financial stocks were mostly higher, as French lender Societe Generale (PA:SOGN) rose 0.23%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn) and Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) added 0.24% and 0.29%.
Among peripheral lenders however, Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo (MI:ISP) and Unicredit (MI:CRDI) lost 0.25% and 1.16% respectively, while Spanish banks Banco Santander (MC:SAN) and BBVA (MC:BBVA) fell 0.06% and 0.14%.
Elsewhere, Air Liquide (PA:AIRP) SA plunged 4.89% after agreeing to buy U.S. rival Airgas Inc (N:ARG).
On the upside, Syngenta AG (VX:SYNN) rallied 1.87% after Monsanto (N:MON) Co.’s chief operating officer said his company is considering whether to make another attempt to acquire the world’s largest pesticide maker.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 slid 0.39%, weighed by losses in the mining sector.
Shares in Fresnillo (L:FRES) fell 0.15% and Bhp Billiton (L:BLT) lost 1.49%, while Anglo American (L:AAL) tumbled 1.89% and Glencore (L:GLEN) plunged 2.37%.
Meanwhile, financial stocks were mixed. Lloyds Banking (L:LLOY) dipped 0.05% and Barclays (L:BARC) declined 0.31%, while HSBC Holdings (L:HSBA) added 0.11% and the Royal Bank of Scotland (L:RBS) gained 0.48%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a lower open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.13% fall, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.15% loss, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.19% loss.