LONDON - Britain's top share index closed lower, extending the previous session's steep falls, after ratings agency Standard & Poor's cut Spain's credit rating, overshadowing strong corporate earnings.

The FTSE 100 closed at 5,586.61 points, down 16.91 or 0.3 percent.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:EUROFIRST

EUROPE - European shares fell, down for the second straight session, with banks under pressure.

The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares closed 1.1 percent lower at 1,056.89 points, after hitting a seven-week low at 1,047.78 earlier in the session on worries over the financial aid for Greece.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:EUROmarkets

FRANKFURT - The DAX index ended at 6,084.34 points, down 75.17 or 1.22 percent.

PARIS - The CAC-40 index closed at 3,787 points, down 57.6 or 1.5 percent.

ZURICH - The Swiss market index closed at 6,576.39 points, down 91.08 or 1.37 percent.

MILAN - The FT IT All Share index closed at 22,079.98 points, down 522.42 or 2.31 percent.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:nikkei

TOKYO - Japan's Nikkei average slid 2.6 percent, dragged down by exporters such as Kyocera after downgrades in Greece and Portugal's credit ratings sparked fears the euro zone's debt problems were spreading.

The Nikkei closed down 287.87 points at 10,924.79, after falling as low as 10,882.4 at one stage.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:hang seng

HONG KONG - The Hang Seng Index ended down 1.47 percent, below the 21,000 mark, after falling as much as two percent in early trading following a slump in US stocks. The Hang Seng closed 312.39 points lower at 20,949.4.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:asx

SYDNEY - Australian stocks fell 1.2 percent, with miners leading the way lower after credit downgrades of Greece and Portugal rattled investors and triggered a flight out of risky assets.

The S&P/ASX 200 index lost 57.2 points to 4,822.8, after being down as much as 1.9 percent and touching its lowest level since March 15.

@MARKET ROUNDUP:south africa

JOHANNESBURG - South African stocks posted their biggest one-day fall in eight months, dropping nearly three percent as blue chips such as Investec were battered after Tuesday's global sell-off.

The All-share index closed at 28,524.78 points, down 784.69 or 2.68 percent. The All Gold index closed at 2,349.46 points, up 28.34 or 1.22 percent, while the Industrial index closed at 22,331.68 points, down 604.66 or 2.64 percent.