European stocks fell, affected by fears raised by economic data about the possibility of continuing to raise interest rates for a longer period, as investors await the minutes of the Federal Reserve meeting (the US central bank). The European STOXX 600 index closed down 0.3 percent, with focus shifting to the minutes of the US Central Bank meeting, which may give an indication about the path of tightening monetary policy in the United States. The banking sector index fell 1.6 percent, retreating from its highest level in one year, which it achieved in the previous session. The basic resources sector index fell 2.1 percent, while the energy sector shares fell 1.3 percent with the decline in commodity prices.
