European Indices Edge Lower on First Day of 2015 Trading as Data Disappoints

European stock indices gain a short-lived fillip on the first day of trading of 2015 from the publication of dovish comments from European Central Bank President Mario Draghi before disappointing manufacturing data alters investor sentiment. In the U.K. insurance industry services provider Quindell, which has been plagued by corporate governance issues, surges on news of breakup discussions with various unnamed suitors. But Royal Bank of Scotland drops sharply on a report pointing to a potential $7.7 billion fine related to mortgage-backed debt sales in the U.S.