Europe midday: Stocks mixed after encouraging eurozone sentiment data

European equity markets were mixed on Monday following news that the London Stock Exchange's proposed merger with Deutsche Börse might not go through and encouraging eurozone sentiment data.

At midday, the benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 index was down 0.23% to 369.15, Germany’s DAX rose 0.11% to 11,816.74 and France’s CAC 40 was up 0.09% to 4,840.69.

Meanwhile, Brent crude was down 0.56% to $56.28 per barrel and West Texas Intermediate was 0.49% lower at $54.18.

The euro was up 0.16% against the dollar to 1.0599 and rose 0.26% versus the pound to 0.84499.

Connor Campbell, financial analyst at Spreadex, said: “The eurozone also lost its way as Monday went on, the DAX turned flat and is threatening to fall back below 11,800, while the CAC dipped by 0.2% having been up by the same amount earlier in the session.

“It seems that the euro’s strength following a jump in region-wide consumer confidence – the currency has taken more than half a percent off of both the pound and the dollar – has dampened interest in the German and French indices, with the latter also struggling with Marine Le Pen’s ongoing presidential push.”

In Paris, the latest Opinionway poll had Le Pen with 26%, centrist independent Emmanuel Macron at 24% (+1) and centre-right Francois Fillon at 21% in the first round of France's presidential election.

In the second round, Macron against Le Pen were at 62% and 38% (previously 61% and 39%) and Fillon against Le Pen were at 58% and 42%, from a previously unchanged reading.

On the data front, the European Central Bank’s M3 money supply data, which measures growth in the amount of money circulating in the eurozone, fell to 4.8% in January from 5% a month earlier.

ECB president Mario Draghi had extended the quantitative easing programme until December 2016 and said it will be tapered until April. The ECB’s next policy meeting will be on 9 March.

The annual growth in household loans grew to 2.2% in January up from 2.2% in December. Loans to non-financial businesses were unchanged at a of 2.3% in January, a seven year high.

Meanwhile, the European Commission's economic sentiment index for the eurozone rose to 108 in February from 107.9 last month, well above the long-term average of 100.

The business confidence indicator increased to 0.82 in February from 0.76 in January, the highest level since June 2011 and above expectations of a 0.79 reading.

There was a rise service industry to 1.3 from 0.8, but a fall sentiment for the retail and construction sectors.

In corporate news, the London Stock Exchange Group dropped 3.26% as it said on Sunday that it did not think its proposed merger with Deutsche Börse, which fell 4.01%, will be approved by the European Commission, after competition regulators came up with "unexpected" demands last week.

Distribution and outsourcing company Bunzl gained 1.84% as it reported a 12% jump in full-year pre-tax profit to £362.9m, boosted by the post-Brexit vote slump in the pound.