(Reuters) -European shares opened lower on Thursday, pulled down by banks after heavyweight HSBC dropped following its proposal to privatise Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Bank, although gains in mining and technology stocks helped limit the overall losses.
The pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.1% at 573.4 points, as of 0711 GMT, but hovered near an all-time high seen in the previous session.
Shares of HSBC dropped 6.6% after the British lender floated plans to privatise Hang Seng in a deal valued at HK$106.1 billion ($13.64 billion). The broader banking sector lost 1.2%.
Lloyds Banking Group shed 3.4% after the lender said it would likely need to set aside more cash to cover the cost of compensating motor finance customers.
Germany’s Gerresheimer slumped 10.7% after the packaging and medical equipment maker cut its annual outlook.
Bucking the sombre mood, the basic resources sector, which includes Europe’s leading miners, climbed 1.4%, tracking gains in copper and iron ore prices.
Technology stocks advanced 0.4%, led by France’s Alten that rose after the IT consulting firm said it would separate the roles of chairman and chief executive officer as part of a governance overhaul.
Shares of Burberry gained 2.4% after Deutsche Bank upgraded the British luxury firm’s stock rating to “buy” from “hold”.
($1 = 7.7805 Hong Kong dollars)
(Reporting by Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru and Amir Orusov in Gdansk; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
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