LONDON - The FTSE 100 of Britain's leading shares ended down after insurers weighed and interest worries dragged several sectors lower, while Cable & Wireless (C&W) led telecoms up. The FTSE 100 ended down 51 points, or 0.77 percent, at 6,565.4, despite stronger-than-expected US home sales data showing a 16.2 percent rise in the sales of new homes in April, the sharpest rise in 14 years.ROUNDUP:EUROFIRSTEUROPE - European shares fell, tracking a broad-based decline in US stocks, although ongoing merger chatter and upbeat sentiment would likely curb losses, analysts said. Earlier data showed sales of new US homes staged their largest monthly increase in 14 years in April, which rekindled hopes among investors that the US housing market may have seen the worst of the current slowdown. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shot higher but quickly surrendered its gains, which dragged on the broader European market. The FTSEurofirst index of the top 300 European shares unofficially ended down 0.77 percent at 1,597.49 points, having touched a high of 1,611.23 earlier in the session, the highest level since mid-December 2000.ROUNDUP:EUROmarketsFRANKFURT - The DAX index ended at 7,697.38 points, down 38.5 or 0.50 percent.

PARIS - The CAC-40 index closed at 6,048.31 points, down 71.89 or 1.17 percent.

ZURICH - The Swiss market index closed at 9,357.02 points, down 81.75 or 0.87 percent.

MILAN - The All Share Mibtel index closed at 33,603 points, down 432 or 1.27 percent.ROUNDUP>nikkeiTOKYO - The Nikkei average ended flat as falls in recent gainers such as Sony Corp. on fears of a sell-off in Chinese stocks were offset by gains in Japan Tobacco Inc. after a Merrill Lynch upgrade and a rebound in auto stocks. The Nikkei inched down 0.05 percent, or 8.15 points, at 17,696.97.NDUP:hang sengHONG KONG - The Hong Kong stock market was closed for a public holiday, Buddha's birthday. Markets will resume trading on Friday. On Wednesday, the benchmark Hang Seng Index closed down 44.95 points at 20,.97.ROUNDUP:asxSYDNEY - Shares dropped 1.2 percent after former US Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan warned of a steep correction in Chinese stocks, while weaker base metals prices weighed down on mining firms. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index dropped 76.0 points to cloat 6,279.1.ROUNDUP:south africaJOHANNESBURG - Stocks slid as investors cashed in some gains in stocks like Kumba Iron Ore after a record-breaking bull run. The All-share index closed at 28,812.94 points, down 274.55 or 0.94 percent. The All Gold index closed at 2,789.71 points, up 5.12 or 0.18 percent, while the Industrial index closed at 19,917.66 points, down 244.35 or 1.21 percent.