-- European bourses tracked moderately lower midday Thursday as traders deciphered mixed messages from Tehran and Washington regarding a possible negotiated opening of the Strait of Hormuz and a subsequent end to Persian Gulf hostilities.
Bank and tech stocks edged higher on continental trading floors, while property and oil shares lagged.
Front-month North Sea Brent crude-oil futures were down 3.2% at $98.02 a barrel.
Investors also eyed muted Wall Street futures amid solidly higher closes overnight on Asian exchanges, with fresh zeniths set on equity indices in Seoul, Taiwan and Tokyo.
In economic news, euro area retail sales declined by a seasonally adjusted 0.1% in March from February, and gained 0.3% month over month in the broader European Union, Eurostat reported. Year over year, retail sales advanced by 1.2% in March in the eurozone and by 1.9% in the bloc.
The pan-continental Stoxx Europe 600 Index was off 0.3% mid-session.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Technology Index was up 0.2%, and the Stoxx 600 Banks Index gained 0.1%.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Oil and Gas Index eased 1.4%, while the Stoxx 600 Europe Food and Beverage Index fell 1.3%.
The REITE, a European REIT index, declined 0.7%.
On the national market indexes, Germany's DAX was down 0.2%, and the FTSE 100 in London lost 0.5%. The CAC 40 in Paris was down 0.2%, and Spain's IBEX 35 gained 0.1%.
Yields on benchmark 10-year German bonds were lower, near 2.98%.
The Euro Stoxx 50 volatility index was up 0.7% at 21.28, indicating above-average volatility for European stock markets in the next 30 days, a negative signal. A reading above 20 indicates choppier markets ahead, while below 20 suggests calmer exchanges.