LONDON - Jitters in the financial sector prompted by tough new proposed regulations sent banks sliding while commodity stocks also retreated on weaker raw material prices, pulling the FTSE 100 down 1.9 percent by close. The FTSE 100 closed at 5,217.61 points, down 102.65 or 1.93 percent.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:EUROFIRST

EUROPE - European equities ended lower, snapping a five-day winning streak, with concerns over tough new Basel regulations and Citigroup's equity offering getting a cool response hurting banking stocks.

The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares closed down 1.3 percent at 1,018.25 points. The index is up 58 percent since reaching a record low in early March and is up 23 percent for the year.

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FRANKFURT - The DAX index ended at 5,844.44 points, down 58.99 or one percent.

PARIS - The CAC-40 index closed at 3,830.82 points, down 45 or 1.16 percent.

ZURICH - The Swiss market index closed at 6,489.23 points, down 43.09 or 0.66 percent.

MILAN - The FT IT All Share index closed at 23,085.3 points, down 203.05 or 0.87 percent.

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TOKYO - The Nikkei average ended down 0.13 percent, slipping from seven-week highs hit earlier in the day, as investors pocketed profits on a rally in big banks such as Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group. The benchmark Nikkei inched down 13.61 points to 10,163.8, after earlier rising as high as 10,260.12, its highest level since October 27.

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HONG KONG - Stocks skidded to a near three-week low, weighed down by fears of more fund outflows. The Hang Seng Index ended down 1.22 percent or 264.11 points at 21,347.63, falling for a third straight session.

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MELBOURNE - Stocks ended barely higher after a slide in National Australia Bank following its announcement of a $12 billion bid for insurer AXA Asia Pacific wiped out most of the index's gains. The S&P/ASX 200 index finished up 0.18 percent or 8.4 points at 4,670.3.

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JOHANNESBURG - South Africa's rand slipped against the dollar after the greenback surged versus most currencies, dragging gold lower, but the weaker rand cheered local export stocks, helping them edge higher. The All-share index closed at 27,130.01 points, up 31.56 or 0.12 percent. The All Gold index closed at 2,462.32 points, down 41.38 or 1.65 percent, while the Industrial index closed at 21,327.47 points, up 139.76 or 0.66 percent.