European Stocks Sink as Greek Crisis Imminent; Automakers Fall

London (Jun 16)  European stocks were lower on Tuesday as investors continued to fret about a Greek debt default and as Federal Reserve policy makers prepared to start a two-day meeting.

In London, the FTSE 100 fell 0.45% to 6,680.23. In Frankfurt, the DAX fell 1.13% to 10,860.57. In Paris, the CAC 40 gave up 0.81% to 4,774.51. The Athens Stock Exchange index was down 2.27%

Attitudes have recently hardened at opposing factions in the debt talks, with the Greece's finance minister reportedly telling a German newspaper that he won't present a new reform proposal at a Thursday meeting with his eurozone peers.

Read More: Euro-Dollar Parity Is Now the New Economic Normal

Greece needs €7.2 billion ($8.1 billion) of bailout funding. It must repay €1.5 billion owed to the International Monetary Fund in two weeks' time, but won't undertake the pension and other reforms demanded by its creditors. European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said on Monday the "ball lies squarely in Greece's court," while Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras accused creditors of "pillaging" the Mediterranean nation. Reports suggest eurozone leaders may hold an emergency weekend summit if Thursday's meeting yields no breakthrough.

In the U.K., as expected, consumer price growth returned, with the annual inflation rate at 0.1% in May after a 0.1% decline in April.

On mainland Europe, analysts and investors' economic sentiment, as measured by the ZEW research institute, came in well below expectations in June in separate surveys for the eurozone and Germany.

Source: TheStreet