Europe's main stock markets diverged at the start of trading on Wednesday, mirroring a mixed session in Asia.

London's FTSE 100 index dropped 0.1 percent to 7,922.01 points.

In the eurozone, the Paris CAC 40 index was almost unchanged at 8,186.05 points and Frankfurt's DAX gained 0.2 percent to stand at 18,417.10.