This paper considers the onset of double diffusive natural convection in a vertical layer of a binary fluid submitted to horizontal thermal and compositional gradients. The analysis deals with the particular situation where the resulting buoyancy forces (the Grashof numbers corresponding to the thermal and solutal effects) are opposing and of equal intensity. The stability analysis for the infinite layer shows that the purely diffusive (motionless) solution prevails at moderate Grashof numbers, and an analytical expression of the critical Rayleigh number as a function of the Lewis number is obtained. These results are then compared to the critical values which are determined from numerical simulations in an enclosure. Numerical calculations in the transient regime are used to give an interpretation of the stability of the steady state diffusive regime when the buoyancy forces are below the critical value.