European stocks higher as markets eye central banks; Dax up 0.47%

European stocks were higher on Tuesday, boosted by the release of positive data out of German, while investors eyed highly anticipated policy statements by the Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank later in the week. 

During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 climbed 0.45%, France’s CAC 40 rose 0.36%, while Germany’s DAX 30 gained 0.47%. 

Earlier Tuesday, data showed that the Gfk German consumer climate index rose more-than-expected in July, ticking up to 7.0 from a reading of 6.8 the previous month. 

Analysts had expected the index to rise to 6.9 this month. 

Financial stocks were broadly lower, as French lenders BNP Paribas and Societe Generale tumbled 1.15% and 0.65%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank plunged 3.96% after saying second-quarter profit fell 49% as it set aside about EUR600 million to cover legal costs. 

Among peripheral lenders, Spanish banks BBVA and Banco Santander declined 0.01% and 0.57% respectively, while Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo edged down 0.10%. 

On the upside, EDF surged 5.59% after the power generator boosted its earnings forecast for 2013. 

Alcatel-Lucent reported second-quarter sales and earnings that exceeded analysts’ estimates and said Qualcomm agreed to buy a minority stake, sending shares up 8.71%. 

In London, FTSE 100 added 0.28%. 

Financial stocks were mostly lower, as shares in Lloyds Banking dropped 0.63%, while the Royal Bank of Scotland and Barclays plummeted 1.92% and 3.77%. 

Earlier Tuesday, Barclays announced plans to raise GBP5.8 billion in a rights offering to boost capital as first-half profit fell 17%. 

Mining stocks were also on the downside, with BHP Billiton slipping 0.26%, while Anglo American and fell 0.32% and Evraz tumbled 1.26%. 

Oil and gas giant BP plunged 3.21% after saying second-quarter earnings fell to USD2.7 billion from USD3.6 billion a year earlier, missing the average estimate. 

In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a moderately lower open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.24% fall, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.37% decline, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.24% loss. 

Also Tuesday, preliminary data showed that Spain's gross domestic product contracted by 0.1% in the second quarter, in line with expectations, following a 0.5% contraction in the previous quarter. 

Later in the day, the U.S. was to release data on the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller Composite-20 house price index, followed by the Conference Board's report on consumer confidence.