European stocks close mostly lower, with Germany lone gainer

European stock markets closed mostly lower on Wednesday, with Germany the only major market to end the session in positive territory, as investors tracked diplomatic signals on the conflict in the Middle East and weighed fresh economic data from the euro area.

The pan-European Stoxx Europe 600 index fell 0.43% to close at 617.27 points.

In national markets, the UK's FTSE 100 dropped 0.47% to 10,559.58 points, France's CAC 40 lost 0.64% to 8,274.57 points, and Italy's FTSE MIB 30 slipped 0.04% to 48,155.82 points.

Germany's DAX 40, however, edged up 0.09% to 24,066.7 points.

European markets remained focused on reports suggesting a possible diplomatic solution to the conflict in the Middle East.

US President Donald Trump, who said on Tuesday that a new meeting with Iran could take place in Pakistan within two days, said in a new interview that the war was "close to ending."

On the data front, euro area industrial production rose 0.4% in February from the previous month, but declined 0.6% year-on-year.

Meanwhile, European Commission officials said inspections were being carried out at the offices of Italian food company Ferrero as part of a probe into possible breaches of competition rules.