Europe open: Volatility picks up as controversy on Capitol Hill intensifies

Stocks began the day lower as reports that the US president may have tried to influence decisions by Federal Bureau of Investigation chief James Comey stoked the flames of political controversy on Capitol Hill.

At 0938 BST the benchmark Stoxx 600 was down by 0.30% to 394.72, albeit off its worst levels of the morning, alongside a drop of 0.49% in the FTSE Mibtel to 21,682.00 and a 0.30% fall in the Cac-40 to 5,389.01.

According to a memo seen by CNN, and attributed to the FBI boss, Donald Trump asked Comey to "let go" of the investigation into his former national security adviser, Michael Flynn.

"A negative opening call comes after risk appetite was dealt a blow overnight by claims that US President Trump may have tried to coerce ex-FBI Director Comey into dropping the probe into Gen. Flynn’s. This adds to a darkening cloud of controversy and disarray hovering over the White House. It also means more questions about the administration’s ability to garner enough Republican, let alone bipartisan support, for the policy pledges for which investors are growing increasingly impatient," explained Mike van Dulken and Henry Croft at Accendo Markets.

To take note of, the news from across the Pond appeared to finally trigger some volatility, with some traders daring to mention the possibility of a presidential impeachment somewhere down the line.

The Chicago Board of Options Exchange VIX volatility index was jumping 9.86% to 11.70 in overnight trading.

In parallel, front month Brent crude futures were slipping 0.33% to $51.47 per barrel on the ICE while euro/dollar was edging up by 0.09% at 1.1093.

On the economic calendar for Wednesday, euro area construction and final CPI figures for the months of March and April were scheduled for release at 10:00 BST.

Volkswagen was on the backfoot after announcing that its joint-venture in China FAW-Volkswagen Automobile Co Ltd will recall nearly 600,000 Golf and Sagitar cars.

Air France-KLM dismissed the possibility that it might step in to save the near-bankrupt carrier.