European Markets Mostly Lower As Ukraine Tensions Rise

(RTTNews) - The major European markets were mixed Thursday, with German stocks down for a third day amid rising tensions in Ukraine.

Russia is being warned by the U.S. against intervening in the Ukraine, where sectarian fighting has taken place in Crimea.

Some major banks struggled today, after Germany's Allianz and the U.K.'s RBS reporting disappointing earnings.

Euro Stoxx 50 index of eurozone bluechip stocks dropped 0.28 percent to 3139.41, clawing back significant early losses in after mid-day.

The German DAX fell 0.76 percent, the French CAC 40 was flat and the FTSE 100 index inched up 0.16 percent. Switzerland's SMI lost 0.67 percent.

In Frankfurt, Allianz lost 2.4 percent after the insurer reported annual results.

The bank sees operating profit for 2014 at roughly 10 billion euros, which is slightly less than what it reported in

Merrill Lynch cut Deutsche Bank to ''Neutral'' from ''Buy.'' The stock was flat.

In Paris, Essilor fell 3 percent. The company announced full year results as well as an acquisition.

Utilities Veolia Environnement and GDF Suez rallied after reporting financial results.

In London, Royal Bank of Scotland tumbled 8 percent. The lender posted an 8.2 billion pound ($13.64 billion) pretax loss for 2013 due to restructuring costs and misconduct charges.

WPP fell 4.6 percent. The company reported increases in pre-tax profit and revenue for the year.

Man Group surged up 15 percent after turning to a profit for the year. The company also announced a $115 million share buyback.

Ahold rose 4 percent in Amsterdam. The Dutch supermarket chain upped its dividend.

In economic news, the Federal Labor Agency said German unemployment declined more than expected, but the jobless rate remained stable in February. The number of people out of work declined by 14,000 to 2.914 million in February. Unemployment was forecast to decrease by 10,000.

Eurozone economic confidence improved for the tenth consecutive month in February, survey data from the European Commission showed. The economic sentiment index rose unexpectedly to 101.2 in February from 101 in January. The score was forecast to drop to 100.7.