European Markets Drift Lower For Third Day

(RTTNews) - European stocks extended declines for a third day after closing at a more than six-week low on Monday. Investors grew more risk-averse as weaker-than-expected U.S. manufacturing data added to worries about the withdrawal of quantitative easing.

The Asian markets saw a broad selloff, tracking steep declines on Wall Street overnight, while trading in the U.S. index futures indicate a positive start ahead of U.S. factory orders data and speeches by a pair of Federal officials due later in the day.

The Euro Stoxx 50 index of eurozone bluechip stocks and the Stoxx Europe 50 index are down about 0.2 percent each. Around Europe, France's CAC 40 is little changed with a negative bias, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 is down 0.1 percent and the German DAX is losing 0.8 percent, weighed down by automakers.

BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen are down between 0.5 percent and 1.6 percent in Frankfurt as investors await European car sales data due later in the day.

Munich Re is gaining half a percent after the German insurer reported better than expected fourth quarter profit and lifted its dividend to 7.25 euros per share from 7.00 euros.

UBS AG shares are up 3 percent after the Swiss banking giant posted turnaround results for the fourth quarter and hiked dividend for 2013.

BP Plc. is losing 1.6 percent in London as the European oil giant posted sharply lower profit for the fourth quarter, hurt by lower production and weaker refining margins.

ARM Holdings Plc. is tumbling 3.1 percent after the chipmaker announced it swung to a net loss of £6.2 million in the three months ended December, compared with a £42.5 million profit in the year-ago period, hurt mainly by an impairment charge.

BG Group Plc. is rallying 2.9 percent even as the oil and gas explorer reported a loss for the fourth quarter compared to a profit last year, reflecting mainly impairment of certain assets in Egypt and shale gas business in the U.S.

Total S.A. shares are down 0.4 percent in Paris. The oil firm announced the sale of its 15 percent participating interest in the offshore Angola Block 15/06 to Sonangol E&P in a transaction valued at $750 million.

On the economic front, British construction sector activity expanded at its fastest pace in nearly six-and-a-half years in January, a survey by Markit Economics and the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply revealed. The corresponding purchasing managers' index rose to 64.6 from 62.1 in December. Economists had forecast the index to fall to 61.5.

Eurozone producer prices fell 0.8 percent in December from a year ago as expected by economists, Eurostat reported. Nonetheless, the pace of decline slowed from 1.2 percent fall seen in November and 1.3 percent drop in October.