In Frankfurt, automotive stocks helped push the DAX into negative territory as automakers Daimler, Volkswagen, and BMW fell 1.8% 1.4%, and 0.4% respectively, while tire maker Continental was off 0.9%. The FTSE fell 0.40%, the DAX lost 0.12%, and the CAC-40 dropped 0.34%. In economic news, the euro area annual inflation rate was 1.6% in December, down from 1.9% in November, but up from 1.4% at the same time the previous year, according to Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.