European stocks declined, with the Stoxx Europe 600 Index heading for the worst start to the year since 2010, as investors awaited reports on euro-area unemployment and U.S. consumer sentiment. Japanese shares fell and U.S. stock-index futures were little changed.

The Stoxx 600 has declined 1.9 percent this month, the biggest January drop since 2010, as the Federal Reserve reduced the pace of its bond buying for the second time in as many months and emerging-market currencies tumbled. The benchmark gauge has fallen 0.9 percent so far this week.

A report at 10 a.m. London time may show euro-area unemployment held at a record 12.1 percent in December, according to economists in a Bloomberg survey. The jobless rate has stayed at that level since April.

In the U.S., data at 9:55 a.m. New York time may show the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan final index of sentiment was 81 in January, according to economists surveyed by Bloomberg. That compares with a preliminary figure of 80.4 and a December reading of 82.5.

FTSE 100 6,488.64 -49.81 -0.76%

CAC 40 4,142.52 -37.50 -0.90%

DAX 9,249.81 -123.67 -1.32%