LONDON - Britain's top share index hit a near 10-month closing low, led down by mining stocks and banks, as risk appetite was hurt by renewed concerns over the strength of global recovery and Europe's debt problems. The FTSE 100 closed at 4,914.22 points, down 157.46 or 3.1 percent.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:EUROFIRST

EUROPE - European shares hit a three-week closing low, breaking a key technical support level, as poor U.S. consumer confidence data raised worries about the economic recovery, while concerns over bank funding persisted.

The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares ended three percent lower at 995.82 points, the lowest close since June 8.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:EUROmarkets

FRANKFURT - The DAX index ended at 5,952.03 points, down 205.19 or 3.33 percent.

PARIS - The CAC-40 index closed at 3,432.99 points, down 143.46 or 4.01 percent.

ZURICH - The Swiss market index closed at 6,144.45 points, down 166.7 or 2.64 percent.

MILAN - The FT IT All Share index closed at 19,793.71 points, down 870.34 or 4.21 percent.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:nikkei

TOKYO - Japan's Nikkei average slipped 1.2 percent, erasing earlier gains as exporters fell on a stronger yen, with the benchmark poised for its worst quarter since Lehman Brothers failed in 2008. The Nikkei shed 123.27 points to close at 9,570.67.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:hang seng

HONG KONG - Shanghai shares slid more than four percent as investors sold existing stocks to make room for Agricultural Bank of China's initial public offering (IPO), potentially the world's largest IPO to date. The slide dragged Hong Kong shares lower with the Hang Seng Index falling 2.3 percent, or 477.78 points, to end at 20,248.9.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:asx

SYDNEY - Australian stocks fell 0.9 percent to end at a three-week low, after spending most of the day wavering near unchanged as book-squaring ahead of the June 30 financial year-end dominated trade. The S&P/ASX 200 index declined 38.9 points to 4,345.7, the sixth straight loss, in light volume.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:south africa

JOHANNESBURG - Stocks slid nearly three percent, the biggest one-day drop since May 20, in line with overseas markets on worries about the health of the global economy, and the rand fell as much as 1.2 percent against the dollar. The All-share index closed at 26,698.7 points, down 591.02 or 2.17 percent. The All Gold index closed at 2,561.71 points, down 42.62 or 1.64 percent, while the Industrial index closed at 21,421.71 points, down 444.32 or 2.03 percent.