Europe's main stock markets steadied at the start of trading on Tuesday following gains in Tokyo.

London's benchmark FTSE 100 index opened flat at 8,416.00 points after official data showed UK unemployment edged higher in the first quarter.

In the eurozone, the Paris CAC 40 was flat at 8,207.46 points and Frankfurt's DAX dipped 0.1 percent to 18,715.28.